Avatar: The Last Airbender creator Mike DiMartino wished to include a creepy animal in the show.

As impressive as Avatar: The Last Airbender already is, creator Michael DiMartino believes he left behind something that could have made it more interesting. American producer, animator, and director Mike DiMartino is famous for being the co-creator of the TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, both on Nickelodeon.
A still from Avatar: The Last Airbender episode The Great Divide
DiMartino earned a great deal of fame, especially for his contribution to the world of animation. For his commendable job, he has won numerous nominations and awards including Annie Awards and a Peabody Award. His excellence in storytelling and broadcasting has really been phenomenal. Despite all this, he feels like by adding one particular element, he could have added more excitement to his masterpiece, Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Avatar: The Last Airbender Creator Wanted to Have an Animal in the Show

Michael Dante DiMartino | Source: Wikimedia Commons
Around 2 years back, the YouTube channel of Avatar: The Last Airbender posted a video where the creators of the show were having a fun conversation. The 11-minute video featured Janet Varney, Mike DiMartino, Dante Basco, and Bryan Konietzko. Amidst all the fun talk, DiMartino mentioned a cool, but creepy animal that he believed had the potential of adding more excitement to the show.

DiMartino mentioned the canyon crawlers and said that he missed out on using these animals. Even Varney agreed that these canyon crawlers from The Great Divide were super creepy. DiMartino said (via Avatar: The Last Airbender).

“That had the canyon crawlers in it, which I feel like was a cool, creepy animal that we didn’t use.”

DiMartino was probably very positive about the canyon crawlers’ potential to add more value to the show. Fans of anime could have enjoyed some more action if these animals were really included in the show.

What Exactly Are These Animals That the Creator Mentioned?

Aang and Sokka in a still from Avatar The Last Airbender
In the YouTube video, DiMartino mentioned a cool, but creepy animal called a canyon crawler. This animal belongs to the western Earth Kingdom and first appeared in The Great Divide (from season 1, episode 11 of Avatar: The Last Airbender). In fact, that was their only appearance.

This animal is known for having very sensitive nostrils that provide it with a sharp sense of smell for hunting. A canyon crawler also has strong jaws to kill its prey quickly. This animal’s anatomy report states that it’s probably a mix of a crocodile and a spider.

Team Avatar found one of these animals while they were going through The Great Divide along with the Gan Jin and Zhang tribes. The animal attacked them but using airbending, Aang got victory over the animal by subduing it.

Avatar: The Last Airbender is available for streaming on Netflix.