>>214314088 (OP)
They are in a constant state of war, and the central feature of Jake's character is that he understands the practical basics of warfare from the corporal grunt's point of view. Braids are better, no time for sexhair in the battlefield. The Neytiri character is an extension of the Sarah Connor character in this way.
In human combat, long hair is a liability (you can pull an enemy unit's hair and slit their throat), hence the buzzcuts and short hair. For the Na'vi, this isn't an option. Happily, they're much taller so it takes a recom (who has the same vulnerability, although they may not value it as much, psychologically) to take out a Na'vi via such a hand-to-hand fashion. IIRC at the original climax, Quaritch pulls Jake up by his queue or similar. I honestly forget the details but I think/imagine that Tsu'tey may have been found with his queue severed in the expanded version, and he's like "just end me bro". For the storyteller, it's a convenient furry-tier piece of anatomy that does all the psychological and sexual things all at once.
Protect Ya Neck.
