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When I was lying there in the VA hospital,

with a big hole blown through the middle of my life,

I started having these dreams of flying.

I was free.

Sooner or later, though, you always have to wake up.

They can fix a spinal, if you got the money,

but not on vet benefits, not in this economy.

A VA check and 12 bucks will get you a cup of coffee.

I'm what they call... waitlisted.

The Bengal Tiger, extinct for over a century is making a comeback.

These cloned tiger cubs at the Beijing Zoo are the latest of a number of species

that have been cloned back into existence in the past five years.

I became a marine for the hardship.

To be hammered on the anvil of life.

I told myself I can pass any test a man can pass.

(CHANTING) Jake! Jake! Jake! Jake! Jake!

Oh!

Let's get it straight, upfront.

I don't want your pity.

You want a fair deal, you're on the wrong planet.

The strong prey on the weak.

That's just the way things are.

And nobody does a damn thing.

Get off! Get off of him!

All I ever wanted in my sorry-ass life was a single thing worth fighting for.

I hope you realized you just lost yourself a customer.

Candy-ass bitch.

If it ain't raining, we ain't training.

It doesn't look like him. It's him.

You Jake Sully?

Step off. You're ruining my good mood.

It's about your brother.

We're looking for Sully, T.

In there.

Jesus, Tommy.

The strong prey on the weak.

A guy with a knife took all Tommy would ever be

for the paper in his wallet.

The concern of the suits was touching.

Your brother represented a significant investment.

We'd like to talk to you about taking over his contract.

And since your genome is identical to his,

you could step into his shoes,

so to speak.

It'd be a fresh start on a new world.

You could do something important. You can make a difference.

And the pay is good.

Very good.

Tommy was the scientist, not me.

He was the one who wanted to get shot light-years out in space

to find the answers.

Me, I was just another dumb grunt getting sent someplace he was gonna regret.

In cryo, you don't dream at all.

It doesn't feel like six years.

More like a fifth of tequila and an ass-kicking.

Are we there yet?

Yeah, we're there, sunshine.

We're there.

You've been in cryo for five years, nine months and 22 days.

You will be hungry. You will be weak.

If you feel nausea, please use the sacks provided for your convenience.

The staff thanks you in advance.

Up ahead was Pandora.

You grew up hearing about it, but I never figured I'd be going there.

Valkyrie 1-6, copy...

Valkyrie 1-6, you are clear for de-orbit burn at 2-2-4-niner.

Copy, Venture Star. Go for de-orbit burn at 2-2-4-niner.

Exo-packs on! Let's go! Exo-packs on!

Exo-packs on! Let's go!

Remember, people, you lose that mask,

you're unconscious in 20 seconds, you're dead in four minutes!

Let's nobody be dead today!

Looks very bad on my report.

Hell's Gate tower, this is TAV 1-6 on approach.

Crossing outer marker. Mine is in sight.

Harnesses off! Get your packs!

- Put it together, let's go! Let's go! Harnesses off! One minute!

When that ramp comes down, go directly into the base. Do not stop!

Go straight inside. Wait for my mark!

Go, go, go, go! Get out of there! Keep moving! Let's go, let's go!

There's no such thing as an ex-Marine.

You may be out, but you never lose the attitude.

Let's go, special case! Do not make me wait for you!

Well, well, ladies.

Look at all this fresh meat! Whoo!

Back on Earth, these guys were Army dogs, Marines,

fighting for freedom.

Look out, hot rod!

But out here they're just hired guns,

taking the money, working for the company.

Check this out, man.

Meals on wheels.

Oh, man, that is just wrong.

I got two guys free in about 20 minutes!

Got it! Need them!

You're not in Kansas anymore.

You are on Pandora, ladies and gentlemen.

Respect that fact every second of every day.

If there is a hell,

you might want to go there for some R&R

after a tour on Pandora.

Out there, beyond that fence,

every living thing that crawls, flies or squats in the mud

wants to kill you and eat your eyes for Jujubes.

We have an indigenous population of humanoids called the Na'vi.

They're fond of arrows dipped in a neurotoxin

that'll stop your heart in one minute.

And they have bones reinforced with naturally occurring carbon fiber.

They are very hard to kill.

As head of security, it is my job to keep you alive.

I will not succeed.

Not with all of you.

If you wish to survive,

you need to cultivate a strong mental attitude.

You've got to obey the rules.

Pandora rules.

Rule number one...

There's nothing like an old-school safety brief

to put your mind at ease.

Excuse me. Excuse me. Jake!

You're Jake, right? Tom's brother.

Wow! You look just like him.

Sorry, I'm Norm. Spellman.

I went through avatar training with him.

...into the bio-lab.

We're gonna spend a lot of time up here.

Hey! How you doing? Norm, avatar driver.

Hi. Hey.

Link... Here's the link room right here.

This is where we're connecting to the avatar.

Me and Norm are here to drive

these remotely controlled bodies called avatars.

And they're grown from human DNA mixed with the DNA of the natives.

Hey. Welcome. Hey.

Welcome to Pandora. Good to have you.

Thanks.

Damn! They got big.

Yeah, they fully mature on the flight out.

So the proprioceptive sims seem to work really well.

Yeah, they've got great muscle tone.

It'll take us a few hours to get them decanted,

but you guys can take them out tomorrow.

There's yours.

Hey. Dr. Norm Spellman.

-Dr. Max Patel. Great to meet you. Good to meet you, yeah.

Looks like him.

No, it looks like you.

This is your avatar now, Jake.

And the concept is that every driver is matched to his own avatar,

so that their nervous systems are in tune,

or something.

Which is why they offered me the gig,

because I can link with Tommy's avatar,

which is insanely expensive.

Is this right? I just say whatever to the video log?

Yeah, we gotta get in the habit of documenting everything.

You know, what we see, what we feel.

It's all part of the science.

And good science is good observation.

Plus it'll help to keep you sane for the next six years.

All right. Whatever.

So, uh...

Well, here I am,

doing science.

They're coming out!

Attention. Drivers coming out of link.

Oh, God.

Where's the lab coat? Where's the lab coat?

Who's got my goddamn cigarette?

Guys! What's wrong with this picture?

Thank you!

Grace Augustine is a legend.

She's the head of the Avatar Program. She wrote the book,

I mean, literally wrote the book on Pandoran botany.

Well, that's 'cause she likes plants better than people.

Here she is, Cinderella back from the ball.

Grace, I'd like you to meet Norm Spellman and Jake Sully.

Norm. I hear good things about you. How's your Na'vi?

May the All Mother...

...smile upon our first meeting.

Not bad. You sound a little formal.

I studied for five years...

...but there is much to learn.

Grace? This is Jake Sully.

Ma'am.

Yeah, yeah. I know who you are,

and I don't need you. I need your brother.

You know, the PhD who trained for three years for this mission?

He's dead.

I know it's a big inconvenience for everyone.

How much lab training have you had?

I dissected a frog once.

You see? You see? I mean, they're just pissing on us

without even the courtesy of calling it rain.

- I'm going to Selfridge. - No, Grace,

I don't think that's a good idea. No, man, this is such bullshit!

I'm gonna kick his corporate butt.