I really like the pitch for Kopaka and Tahu’s background that was discussed on TTV 247, however if I could just make one suggestion it would be this. Matoro wasn’t killed in the battle, but he was mortally wounded and everyone knows he is dying.
The reasoning for this change is because I feel like if Kopaka is already king of Ihu, even if his people don’t agree with his decisions, he has control. He could theoretically call off the war against the Mangaians and have the authority to do so. But if he’s still the prince, he doesn’t have that authority and thus needs to work harder to achieve a peace between the two tribes, and additionally it throws in a new problem: He’s betraying his dying father!
It would add a whole new layer to his struggle on whethter to side with Ihu or try to make peace, as well as his decision to become a Toa instead of the next king. By making either of these decisions he is doing it to his father that he knows will not survive much longer. He’s also leaving his father in the position of needing to find a succesor on his deathbed, which could create more conflicts. For example as an act of revenge he could say that whoever kills Tahu/Narmoto will become the next king, making it now even harder for peace to be achieved.
Lastly, this point is solely about Kopaka. I think it’s been suggested numerous times by different people but just in case I wanted to put it here as well. What if Izotor was a lot like Narmoto when he was younger. Brash, headstrong, and always rushing into things. But one day this behavior got him into a lot of trouble with some Rahi, at the hands of whom his eye was permanently damaged. It’s because of this event that he is always reserved and calculating, because he’s taken the lesson from this experience to mean go to the extreme on the opposite end of the spectrum.
These are just my opinions though, but I really do think they add a lot to the character and the choices he’ll have to make throughout G3. Let me know what you think though.
-Eban.