Nickelodeon has unexpectedly pulled the final five episodes of The Legend of Korra Season 3 from its broadcast schedule, deciding instead to stream them online.

Bryan Konietzko, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, responded quickly Wednesday to fan outcry over the animated series' seeming disappearance, posting the image below on his blog. The show's official Tumblr page also clarified that following Friday's television premiere of "The Terror Within," episodes will appear weekly beginning Aug. 1 on Nick.com, the Nick app and other platform.

"Thousands of you have been asking to watch this incredible show online, so hopefully this news works in your favor," the post states, attempting to put a happy face on news most fans will likely view as a grim development.

Characterizing the third season as "a mess on the distribution side," The Escapist chronicles some of the hurdles the show has faced, including an accidental leak of several episodes that led to an early release of the trailer, a premiere that was announced only a week in advance, with little promotion, and an accelerated broadcast schedule.