Jake's Gun Safety Mistake In Avatar 2 That Could Have Spelled Disaster For Neytiri
From the beginning moments of James Cameron's 2009 visual undertaking, "Avatar," it was clear that protagonist Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) defined himself by his military service. In direct opposition to his scientist twin brother, Jake decided to join the Marines. And though his career came to a decisive halt after sustaining a battle injury, Jake still holds dear the ideals of his service. It is why he agrees to spy for Colonel Quaritch (Stephen Lang) and uses his knowledge of firearms while on Pandora.
For all these reasons and more, it should be generally agreed upon that Jake would know his way around weapons. But after over a decade of living on Pandora in the body of his Avatar, it seems that some teachings have slipped through the cracks in "Avatar: The Way of Water." Many fans have noted the crucial mistake that no Marine should ever be caught making, especially when it comes to the safety of their wife.
Neytiri deserves better
After fighting off Pandora's military occupation together and carrying three of their five children, Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) deserves a break. The daughter of the chief was once promised to the future leader of their clan but gave him the shaft after bonding with interloping Jake. Even so, the thanks she gets is little to none in "Avatar: The Way of Water." Jake remains problematic as ever in the new film and on top of it, fans on Reddit have noticed that he potentially endangered Neytiri.
"[W]hen Jake was cleaning his gun, he loads it, puts it back on the table and it's pointing directly at his wife," noticed u/CoinsaregoodforMe. "The dude was a Marine lol what happened to gun safety." Many Redditors who loved the film also couldn't help but chime in.
"My dad was a military man, having served 28 years of his life in both the Coast guard and the Navy and I'm pretty sure he would have been yelling at the screen telling Jake how stupid he was to take that risk," added u/Axiom06. "Always assume that a gun is loaded." Neytiri may be battle-tested, but she is under enough pressure as it is without having to worry about guns going off accidentally. Jake may have spent the past decade in a warrior culture away from the military, but that seems something you wouldn't likely forget.
Family is what keeps the film together
Jake's rife relationship with his family is not an accident. His philosophy of training his family like an army is meant to reflect that he is not a perfect parent or husband. This concept fascinated James Cameron and enticed him to include it in "Avatar: The Way of Water."
"I'm a father of five," Cameron explained to Empire in an exclusive interview. "I look around — I don't want to specifically say the Marvel Universe, or the DC Universe — at current fantasy and science-fiction and all these heroes seem unbound in the mire of relationships, the stuff that pulls you down and clips your wings, that stops you running around and risking your life. I thought, 'What if I take these incredible characters of Jake and Neytiri and give them a family?' That gives them feet of clay right there." While characters such as Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) finally settle down and have children in "Avengers: Endgame," there is still some logic to what Cameron is saying. Tony can put on the suit and trust that Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow) will ensure their daughter stays out of danger. The family in "The Way of Water" is complex, but Jake raises his children with a specific perspective. "Jake comes from the point of view of being a Marine and leans into that way of thinking because that's what was ingrained in him about surviving. Pacifism and militarism are definitely going to come clashing."