I remember what they taught me

You are impatient. You have yet to master the basics.

Each of the elemental bending styles in Avatar are based on real Chinese martial arts. According to Sifu Kisu, the show's martial arts expert, firebending is based on northern Shaolin kung fu. This means the style focuses on aggressive, quick, long range attacks with powerful arm and leg movements. Also, it means that the style is super pretty.

As the Firelord's son, it's no surprise that Zuko's a firebender, though unlike his prodigy sister or well-practiced uncle, Zuko's not actually very good. (Constantly being in Azula's shadow will do that to a guy.) His impatience makes him a tough student for Iroh, and his angry, headstrong determination makes him unable to bend lightning or even firebend properly.

Still, when Zuko sets his mind to it, he can be a decent bender. He beats Zhao in an agni kai with very little trouble (S01E03, "The Southern Air Temple"), and while his bending is mostly fueled by rage, he still manages to give Katara and Aang a run for their money whenever a there's a fight.

Once Zuko is put in a position of having to teach firebending to Aang, however, he really comes into his own as a bender. When he first switches sides, Zuko realizes he can't rely on anger to fuel his bending anymore, so he and Aang go to find the Sun Warriors, some of the earliest firebenders (S03E13, "The Firebending Masters"). Though thought to be extinct, it turns out there are two dragons left in the world, guarded by the Sun Warriors, and these dragons decide to let Aang and Zuko in on the real secret of firebending. Thereafter, both boys can kick some serious butt with fire. Zuko's at the top of his game when facing down Azula at the end of the series, and while he still can't really compete with her inate skill, he does hold his own quite well until Azula cheats (S03E20, "Sozin's Comet, Part 3: Into the Inferno").

We never do see Zuko learn to make his own lightning, but he does learn to redirect it quite well, and ultimately he does become a very decent bender is his own right (though probably not of the same caliber as Azula at full strength or Aang once he's really mastered the element). I get the impression that post-series Zuko will become a much more even-tempered, powerful firebender...particularly if he sticks to Iroh's lessons.


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