The Legend of Korra takes place 70 years after Avatar Aang's final triumph over Fire Lord Ozai, and Avatar Korra is the only one who can save the world from monstrous threats such as Amon the revolutionary, the Airbender anarchist Zaheer, and more. Korra has long since proven herself a great hero, but she also suffered many mishaps and defeats along the way.
For all her bending prowess and bravado, Korra can be quite vulnerable or foolish at times, and this effectively makes her a better balanced and relatable hero. Sometimes, Korra's failures were her own fault, while other times, she was simply dealt a bad hand or took on a foe who was too powerful for her to handle alone. When did Avatar Korra suffer total failure as an Avatar or as a person?
10 When Korra Fumbled With Her Dating Life In Republic City
Korra isn't a 12-year-old kid; she is in her mid to late teens, and when she arrived in the sprawling Republic City, she met two special boys, the brothers Mako and Bolin. Long before her heartfelt relationship with Asami Sato, Korra tried dating both brothers, and it turned out badly.
Mako turned Korra down, so Korra dated Bolin, who greatly enjoyed it. Then, Korra and Mako fussed at each other, only to end up kissing... just as Bolin walked in and burst into tears. Korra blamed herself for all this, and it hurt the Fire Ferrets' performance for a time.
9 When Tarrlok Overpowered Korra & Captured Her With Bloodbending
Korra's main foe in Book One: Air was Amon himself, but she had another problem -- Tarrlok, a councilman and Waterbender. When Tarrlok failed to use Korra as his warrior-puppet, he imprisoned Korra's friends to try and bend her arm. Korra confronted him in his office one night to resolve this.
They got into a fight, and Korra had the edge, with three elements to Tarrlok's one. To everyone's surprise, Tarrlok was a bloodbender, and he captured a stunned Korra and drove her to his remote cabin. Korra was temporarily out of the picture, and Tarrlok made up a cover story for the public.
8 When Amon Erased Korra's Bending
Korra's biggest enemy was Amon, and she was terrified that Amon would take her bending away, which he had already done to Lightning Bolt Zolt and many other victims. Amon held back to avoid making a martyr of Korra, but when the time was right, he struck.
Amon overpowered both Korra and Mako during the final battle for Republic City, and as promised, he took Korra's bending. Korra did unlock her airbending right after this, but she lost the other three elements, which upset her greatly. What kind of Avatar can bend only air?
7 When Amon Disrupted The Arena Match & Declared War
Amon threatened war if Republic City's council didn't submit to him, and he swore to storm the final pro-bending match to kick his revolution into high gear. The council, at Lin Beifong's suggestion, defied Amon and allowed the match to happen as scheduled. Korra was right there in the arena when Amon arrived.
Amon's fellows arrived in force, knocking out the metalbender police and robbing a pro bender of his bending. Korra fought back, but she couldn't capture Amon or his lieutenant and was forced to watch them leave. This meant war, and Amon had scored the first victory.
6 When Korra Opened The Northern Portal For Unalaq
In Book Two: Spirits, Korra's uncle Unalaq was determined to bring spirits back to restore balance, but he also intended to throw the world into darkness by freeing the ultimate dark spirit, Vaatu. He needed the two polar spirit portals opened, and Korra willingly opened the southern one.
Later, Korra and her uncle were at odds, especially when Unalaq captured Jinora, Tenzin's eldest daughter, and thus forced Korra's hand. Korra opened the northern portal to help enable Unalaq's plan, and Unalaq ran off with Jinora. It was a total loss.
5 When Korra Lost To Unalaq & Had Raava Destroyed
Korra faced her uncle once again in the spirit realm, but it didn't go well. Korra was too late to stop Unalaq from freeing Vaatu and fusing with it, and Unalaq became the first (and only) dark Avatar. With this incredible power, Unalaq overwhelmed Korra, then beat Raava out of existence.
This was a serious blow, cutting off Korra's connection to all past avatars, from Aang and Kyoshi to Avatar Wan, the very first one. Korra was powerless as Unalaq jumped through a portal to reach Republic City to wreak havoc as a giant. Korra totally gave up, until Tenzin showed her a way to fight back.
4 When Korra Surrendered To Zaheer & Fell For His Trick
In Book Three: Change, Zaheer tried and failed several times to capture Korra, so he decided to strike Korra where she was truly vulnerable. He and the rest of the Red Lotus organization stormed the Northern Air Temple and captured everyone there, then created a hostage situation. Korra had to give herself up to free the Airbenders, or else.
It was a tense moment for Korra, and as a true selfless hero, she gave herself up. But it was a trick -- the Airbender hostages were dummies, and Zaheer now had Korra in his grasp. In mere moments, the Avatar would be doomed forever.
3 When Korra Failed To Defeat Zaheer Alone
Korra was firmly in the Red Lotus' hands, and she was ritually chained up in a cave, and force-fed a "metal poison." This forced Korra into the Avatar State, and the Red Lotus' best warriors tried to kill her. Korra broke free and fought back, but time was against her.
Zaheer couldn't easily fight back against four elements, but he persisted, and he finally had Korra on the ropes for real. He was this close to killing her when Jinora rallied the Airbenders and captured Zaheer in a massive air funnel, ending the fight favorably. Korra, however, could take little credit for it.
2 Korra Had Leftover Mercury In Her & She Didn't Know It
Suyin Beifong, a metalbender, extracted most of the mercury from Korra's body, saving her life. However, a small amount remained, and neither Korra nor Suyin realized it, so this failure is actually on both of them. Having a bit of mercury leftover wreaked havoc on Korra for three grueling years.
Korra had mental scars from her recent experiences, and physically, she was weak and heavy from the poison. She couldn't even enter the Avatar State, and she never sensed the mercury in her at all. So, it fell to Toph Beifong, the first-ever metalbender, to sense it and help Korra extract it at last.
1 When Korra Failed To Defend Zaofu From Kuvira
Korra rid herself of the leftover mercury just in time to face the warmongering Kuvira, who had brought her entire army to the all-metal city of Zaofu, in the Earth Kingdom. Suyin Beifong had failed to protect the city from Kuvira, so it fell to Korra to make things right.
However, Korra didn't have much better luck than Suyin. She was now capable of entering the Avatar State at will, but terrifying images of her poisoned self kept haunting her, and she lost a formal duel against Kuvira. Based on the agreed-upon terms, Kuvira was now free to storm Zaofu and capture it, which she did.