Aang, the protagonist of Avatar: The Last Airbender, exists at the peak of adorableness — his charismatic overtures, his love for peace, his innate negotiation skills, his vegetarianism, his lack of toxic masculinity, all these features make him one of the most, if not the most, beloved animated characters of all time.
In the course of his mission, or in general, Aang has gotten himself involved in some rather uncharacteristic activities and has also been responsible for a few dubious decisions. There aren't a lot of instances like these, but here are ten that stand out the most.
10 Ran Away From His Responsibilities
Aang learns about being the Avatar at the tender age of twelve (it's normally sixteen, but the monks had the impending war weighing on their minds.)
He behaves immaturely in this situation and escapes on Appa after learning that he would be transferred to the Eastern Air Temple in order to keep him apart from Gyatso. Aang faces the weight of his responsibilities when he wakes up, though, given that he now has a hunter: the banished Prince Zuko seeking to get over a few of his daddy issues.
9 The Omashu Slide
In the Earthbending city of Omashu, Aang and little Bumi used the "mail route" channels as a personal roller-coaster/slide, deriving immense enjoyment from the rush. In fact, when Team Avatar arrives there over a century later, he forces them to join him in the activity, completely unheedful of their terror.
More importantly, Aang fails to consider the consequences of any potential accident; even though he assures his friends that his Airbending can protect them, this doesn't mean that innocent people won't be endangered (like the Cabbage merchant, for example.)
8 Surfing On Innocent Fish
Aang's daredevil behavior extended into the animal kingdom, and his desire for this specific brand of novelty might actually be considered a minor form of abuse.
He is interested in penguin-sailing and riding hog monkeys, whom he claims do not enjoy the experience but "that's what makes it fun!" Aang also surfs on the backs of the Elephant Koi around Kyoshi Island, heedless of the poor thing's consent. At least the Avatar Kuruk surfed on mountain waves generated by his own Waterbending.
7 Overdid His First Firebending
As an Airbender of immense repute, Aang naturally finds the coarseness of Firebending uncomfortable at first. Still, when he generates his first flame under the sage guidance of Master Jeong Jeong, his enthusiasm exceeds his skill level and he accidentally injures Katara's hands.
It's great that Aang is immediately apologetic, but he takes his contrition too far by vowing to, "never Firebend again." On a positive note, Katara conceives her own healing powers while soothing her palms in flowing water.
6 Tried To Prevent His Friends From Leaving
When Katara and Sokka begin talking about their home and childhood, Aang is upset because he is unable to share that bond with them. Rather than have a discussion about being left out, he decides to prevent his friends from "abandoning" him to go see their long-lost father, Hakoda, by concealing the map leading to his location within his outfit.
Later, when Bato celebrates Team Avatar for their greatest features — Aang being trustworthiness — his shame forces him to reveal his indiscretion, but Sokka and Katara are far too furious with him to care at this point.
5 Almost Abandoned Team Avatar
It is a paradoxical quirk of nature that permits Aang to hold on to his friends against their will but simultaneously lets him forsake them whenever he's in a bad mood: even if they aren't at fault.
Upon discovering that Sandbenders had stolen his best friend, he flies into a torrential rage and just Airbends off into the Si Wong desert, leaving the others to fend for themselves. When Toph confirms the identity of the kidnappers, Aang morphs into the Avatar State and would have probably vaporized the settlement if Katara hadn't calmed him down.
4 Cheated The Spirits
When Team Avatar infiltrates Wan Shi Tong's mega-library, the owl spirit only allows them to rifle through its tomes and manuscripts only if they swear never to "abuse the knowledge" obtained from his collection.
Of course, Sokka has to slip up at some point, and when Wan Shi Tong finds out that they actually plan to use the upcoming solar eclipse to attack the Fire Nation, he tries to stop them from escaping while sinking the building deeper into the desert. It is understandable, given the extenuating circumstances, but the Avatar should never take a vow they do not plan to keep.
3 Refused To Unlock His Final Chakra
Aang figures out how to unlock his chakras with the help of Guru Pathik, a decrepit old man bursting with luminous wisdom. However, he cannot get himself to open the seventh and final one, because this means abandoning his earthly ties (and there is no way he can even dream of doing that to Katara.)
Aang does try, at least, but second, he catches a whiff of his love being in danger, he abandons his training and rushes to rescue her. At the end, the chakra gets blocked by Azula's perfectly-timed lightning bending blast, anyway.
2 Expected Katara To Love Him
While "touring" through the Fire Nation, the gang comes across a play based on their adventures — watching themselves interact on stage results in unique responses from everyone, but Aang is clearly the most impacted.
When he sulks about his feelings to Katara, she says that she can't give him a clear answer with everything else going on. Aang lets his hormones do the talking and try to attack her with a kiss, but this only makes the situation worse because Katara is now angry with him for ignoring her agency.
1 Avoided Killing Ozai
Ozai's staggering Firebending capabilities aside, his tendency towards manipulating and backstabbing made it imperative that he be stopped; except, Aang refuses to accept this outcome, and searches for the perfect balance between what the world desires and what he does.
Luckily, he finds the answer to his conundrum in the form of a Lion Turtle and takes Ozai's bending away (a technique repeated on the Bloodbender Yakone in the sequel.) What would he have done it didn't have this option, though? Would he have broken Air Nomad code and committed murder? Or would he have let everything burn?