Who is Tenzin’s Father?
Tenzin is a quiet man with a strong sense of responsibility. He feels a duty to the people of Republic City and to his family.
He is a stern character who can become flustered when he sees foolishness or madness. He also has a tendency to overvalue his own accomplishments.
His mother
Tenzin’s mother, Colleen, lives in New York City with her two sons. She works from home as a licensed special education teacher. Her boys are active in karate and practice five or six days a week. They also take piano lessons.
The show also reveals that Pema is a Tibetan Buddhist. It’s likely that she will be instrumental in helping Tenzin fight against the Equalists. Pema was formerly a member of the Equalists, but left when she realized that Amon was becoming more radical.
The show also reveals that Tenzin has four children. His daughters, Kya and Jinora, are airbenders. He also has a son, Ikki. The implication is that Tenzin’s children will be sent to each Air temple to help repopulate them. Ikki would go to the Eastern Air Temple, Jinora to the Western, Meelo to the Northern and Rohan (if he is an airbender) to the Southern Air temple. This will give them a chance to reconnect with the airbending community.
His father
Tenzin is a proud man who takes his role as airbender master and parental figure to Avatar Korra very seriously. He carries himself with grace and respect, despite the stress and responsibilities of his position.
His close relationship with Pema is also important to his character, as he has a clear sense of responsibility for their children, Kya and Ikki. He has a stern and serious demeanor, but can also be flustered by perceived foolishness or madness.
Tenzin has a longstanding friendship with Toph Beifong’s daughter, Lin, although their romantic relationship eventually deteriorated due to Lin’s refusal to have children. Nevertheless, Tenzin and Lin continue to share a mutual respect for each other. He was initially hesitant to acknowledge Jinora’s mastery of airbending, but eventually relented after she helped the new Air Nation defeat Zaheer. He subsequently anointed her as a true master airbender. He is a dedicated world leader who takes his duty to Republic City and the Air Nomad culture very seriously.
His siblings
Tenzin has a close relationship with all of his children, who are willing to help him whenever possible. He especially cares about Jinora and is proud of her for mastering the art of airbending so early in life.
He also has a longstanding friendship with Lin Beifong, daughter of Toph Beifong, and at one point, the two were a couple. Eventually, Pema, an Air Acolyte, entered the picture and won Lin’s heart, causing their romantic relationship to end.
Despite his pacifist tendencies, Tenzin has shown the ability to be ruthless when necessary in the name of protecting his loved ones. He did this when he used brute force to break through the Northern defenses surrounding the Southern spirit portal.
During the Fog of Lost Souls, he was confronted by the image of his father and nearly dissolved into tears. However, he was able to overcome this insecurity with the help of Aang’s illusion and successfully escape the Fog along with his family.
His children
Jinora is a badass bookworm, and I think we’ll see her become a full airbending master. Kya probably will too.
Tenzin and his mom Colleen live a pretty normal life with the kids. They’re both busy with their careers (Colleen’s a special education teacher) and the boys practice karate several times a week.
It’s interesting to note that Tenzin has four children, which he specifically arranged so they would repopulate each of the Air Temples. So it appears he was quite serious about his duties to Air Nomad culture and airbending.
It also seems that Tenzin has had some prior run-ins with Amon and his Equalist movement. This may have sparked his determination to keep the temples safe and free of Equalists in the future. He has even used his own money to help evict them from their homes. A brilliant move on his part, if you ask me. I’m sure the Equalists will take notice.