Toph Beifong is a character from Avatar: The Last Airbender introduced in the Season 2 episode "The Blind Bandit". She is an earthbending master, one of the most powerful of her time, and the discoverer of metalbending.
She was voiced by Jessie Flower in Avatar: The Last Airbender, Kate Higgins in Books Two and Three of The Legend of Korra, and the late Philece Sampler in Book Four of the same series.
Why She Rocks[]
- She along with Aang are the most entertaining characters of the show.
- Toph was constantly treated condescendingly because of her visual impairment, particularly by her overprotective parents, Lao and Poppy Beifong. Upon discovering badgermoles, earthbending animals who are also blind, she learned how to use earthbending as an extension of her senses. This gave her the ability to "see" every vibration that passes through the ground.
- Great character design that matches he Earth Kingdom heritage very well.
- Having developed her own unique style of earthbending, Toph acquired a toughened personality and became famous for winning underground earthbending tournaments under the name "The Blind Bandit", doing so behind her parents' backs. Also, she's 12 years old and still managed to be a champion and one of the most powerful earthbenders ever! Very impressive, especially for a blind girl.
- Plus, she invented metalbending, a skill previously thought to be impossible by earthbenders. Child prodigy would be a massive understatement.
- Despite usually being pretty stubborn and arrogant, there have been times when she was the most practical and levelheaded on the team. Take season 3 when Aang needed a firebending teacher, Zuko had offered to teach him, but the entire team refused to let him do it because of his shady past. This is reasonable, but Toph saw that Zuko was being genuine and stated that they still needed a firebending teacher and Zuko was the perfect opportunity.
- While the least developed of the main cast, she did get some good development in the episode, "The Runaway", where she learns that Katara’s motherly nature towards the group is because she took on the role of her and Sokka’s mother after her death. Toph then admits that she appreciates Katara's motherly nature and believes Katara cares for her more than her real mother ever did, which touched Katara. By the end of the episode, she does admit that she does miss her parents and doesn’t hate them after all, and with Katara’s help, she writes writes down a heart-felt message for her parents which she sends Hawky to deliver.
- After the series ended, the comics revealed that she had opened a metalbending academy.
- Also in the comics, she resolves the conflict with her parents, when her father sees that she is strong and can take care of herself, and he apologizes to her for his bad father skills towards her. They reform their bond, and by the Legend of Korra, she has fully reconciled with her parents, so much so that they were willing to let Suyin stay with them to avoid their granddaughter going to jail.
- After Republic City's formation, Toph became the city's first Chief of Police, forming the Metalbending Police Force to help maintain order.
- She does truly care for her family, like how she bonded with her parents after fixing their conflict, and how she cares for her daughters, Lin and Suyin, and her granddaughter, Opal.
Bad Qualities[]
- She can be pretty hard-headed towards other members of the Gaang.
- She's often a total slob in both her demeanor and her actions.
- She is less developed as Katara and Sokka and even Aang. Book 3 really shows this (with the exception of "The Runaway"). In addition, the conflict with her parents is never resolved (though it is resolved in the Rift comic).