The tragedy of the Black Paladin
Part 3: Why Shiroās story is still a tragic one......
Never thought I had to write a Part 3 but here we are.
So it seems the consensus for S7 is you hate it or hate it more. For some it was the shipping and LGBT rep (will not be getting into it because itās not my place)Ā but for me it was you know who and how once again heās sidelined.
āBut heās piloting the Atlas! Heās still involved!ā
āCan you stopĀ whining about the show not going your way?ā
As Iāve said in my first post of thisĀ āseriesā, you are missing the point. The reason a lot fans canāt get by this wholeĀ āretired Paladin who becomes the Atlas PilotāĀ is because it negates andĀ inspiring tale about a man that wouldnāt let the universe tell him that heās broken and unworthy.
Remember how this man became a leader to a bunch of kids during a time when he would haveĀ his own demons to deal with? How he feared that he wasnāt good enough to be a Paladin because of the horrible things he was subjected to just so he could survive?Ā Remember how he fought against a former Paladin on the Astral Plane to earn Blackās trust and then reclaim that Black Bayard from the one who became unworthy of Blackās power? Remember how his death didnāt stop him from reaching out to the team when they needed him?
I remember, but I guess the EPās didnāt or they just didnāt care because the only reason Shiro is still around is because they were forced to keep him around by their bosses. They have said this in every single interview when it comes to talking about Shiro. Itās impossible to ignore it.
I was hoping that S7 would have a fake out about Shiro being a retired Paladin, or that heāll get some sort of happy ending for getting back to Earth but as it turns out the message is this:
āYou canāt fight your fate Shiro. Your story was never about overcoming your demons. You cannot have any personal happiness because you were never meant to have it. You were never a part of the team in the grand scheme of things.ā
After everything Shiro has done since the beginning of the series, all he gets in return is nothing.Ā
He is reduced to side character for the first half of the season. Heck, he might as well be considered a side character now.
He will never use the Black Bayard he fought and earned for because heās no longer a Paladin. Even if one gets made for him it will never have the same significance as the one he actually earned.Ā
Kuron will never be a Paladin again. Heās now labeled as an evil clone even though the writers themselves have said that he was never evil. Erratic, but not evil.
He will never see Adam again. Shiro doesnāt seem to have any other loved ones back home so learning that the man he loved has been KIA before they could reconcile or have some kind of closure has been denied from him. The team get to see their families, but Shiro? Heās not a Paladin anymore so heās atomically denied this too.
He never gets to defeat Sendak on his own terms. Sendak was built up as the embodiment of Shiroās fears of becoming a monster for the Galra Empire. Not only was this never brought up again, but Shiro is not the one that gets to kill the bastard. Apparently Keith didnāt get enough hero moments this season so they let him strike the killing blow. I was actually peeved off at that (I donāt hate you as a character, Keith, but I am hating how much youāre being turned into a spotlight hog).Ā
But you know whatās the worst part in all of this? According this interview the EPās were planning on having Shiro return as the Black Paladin but Keith was too tempting to pass off.
To me this means even when they were considering that Shiro became more than a throw-away character, The EPās just couldnātĀ do it. This plot line mustāve been set up since S1/S2 (and possibly in other seasons that I may not have noticed)Ā because the narrative constantly pointedĀ Ā out that Shiro is the True Black Paladin. he was chosen, he fought and protected, and he earned the right to be called one. Apparently we were wrong. It was just Shiro setting things up for Keith to have an easy time leading.
This is so.......tragic. I canāt believe Iāve wasted two years, 7 seasons, and a lot of sleep time for a character I wasnāt suppose to see as a main character, let alone root for. What was the point?
S7 is enough for me to officially decide that I wonāt be continuing into S8 (if by some miracle that I do, I will just be reading spoilers. Admittedly I do want to know what that emotional scene that Shiroās VA hinted is all about. I donāt think itās in S7). Much like the Shiroās bond to Black, my bond to this series has been severed and I canāt force myself to watch a show I can no longer enjoy. Iām sure that Iām not the only one who thinks that.
This really sucks but if this is going to be my last Voltron post ever I will say this:
Whatever reasons the EPās and DWās may have, itās a shame that Shiro was never given chance to fully shine in the role he was meant to have. Shiro may never be Paladin in this series or the next but he will alway be the True Black Paladin in my eyes.
