#lion force

ROBO-DUO Voltron - ThreeZero

[All images are owned by Toei Animation and World Events Productions. Please don’t sue me.]

As I mentioned before, my first exposure to anime (or, as I called it back then, “Japanimation”) was Star Blazers and an anthology series called Force Five (again, if anyone finds any footage of this series online, please let me know!)

However, years later I was exposed to another anime series that is likely to be more familiar to everyone.

[NOTE: As with Star Blazers, I am covering the American version of the series rather than the original Japanese, though there’s one difference between the two I’ll briefly mention when it comes up]

(Thanks to Peacock Kids)

(Yes, the narrator is none other than Peter Cullen, who is the voice of Optimus Prime. Nice to know Voltron has the support of the Autobots!)

Voltron (AKA Voltron III, Voltron of the Far Universe,or Lion Force Voltron) tells the story of a team of five Space Explorers who travel to a planet known as Arus to assist the government against an alien invasion. The five are entrusted to reawaken the planet’s primary defense: Voltron (why didn’t they have Voltron online before the invasion?)

(Thanks to Al Kennon)

…a squadron of giant robot lions which…well, we’ll get to that in a bit.

The leader of the team (henceforth called the Voltron Force) is Kieth, who pilots the Black Lion.

Keith’s second in command is Lance, who pilots the Red Lion.

Sven pilots the Blue Lion…until he’s hospitalized by an enemy agent (here’s the one difference I'm discussing: in the Japanese version “Sven” (I’m not looking up his Japanese name) is killed in the attack (obviously we couldn’t have the kids see someone die!). However, his twin brother appears late in the series; the American version has Sven make a return after his recovery) to be replaced by…

…Princess Allura, ruler of Arus.

Pidge pilots the Green Lion

Hunk pilots the Yellow Lion.

The Voltron Force defends Arus against the forces of…

King Zarkon

Aided by the witch Haggar, who creates giant monsters (called Robeasts) to send against the Voltron Force.

Zarkon’s son Lotor commands Zarkon’s armies and has a bit of a crush on Allura, determined to take her for his bride.

The battles are pretty much the same: The Lions attack the Robreast Of The Week, but are overmatched until…

(Thanks again to Peacock Kids)

After that, the fight’s a bit more even until Voltron finally creates its Blazing Sword weapon and slices the Robeast in half (why doesn’t it start with that?)

However, Voltron isn’t the only Defender of the Universe!

(Thanks to T. Winters)

The Galaxy Alliance is overcrowded and it’s up to the Space Explorers of the S.S. Explorer (really original name, guys!) to find new planets to colonize. This inevitable puts them at odds with the Drule Empire (it’s never officially stated if King Zarkon is part of the empire, but Drule’s giant monsters are also called Robeasts)

Like the Lion Force Voltron, this version of Voltron (AKA Voltron I, Voltron of the Near Universe,or Vehicle Team Voltron; there was supposed to be a third Voltron series, but negotiations between Toei (the animation studio that produced the original manga) and World Events (the American company that converted the series into Voltron) fell through), the team consisted of smaller vessels that combined to form Voltron. Unlike Lion Force, the vessels were three squads of fighters that specialized in either air, land, or undersea combat.

(Thanks to reminators)

As many of you are aware (mainly due to the fact that NO ONE remembers the Vehicle Team series), the Lion Force became the most popular of the two, and their story has been retold at least twice.

Kinda glad they brought Cossack along for the ride in this. He may be a bad guy, but he amuses me.  And seeing the Vehicle team again. I know it wasn’t that long ago, but I missed them. Even with that slight, momentary error I think I saw in Cliff’s uniform being the wrong colour. OH well. I will admit, it was strange that Zarkon and Lotor seemed to be on decent terms. Weren’t y’all wanting each other dead before? You know what, screw you two. Like father, like son. Both idiots.  “I hope you Drules keep up your end of the bargain.” I mean, Zarkon says it as though they aren’t the same race. I know technically they aren’t with their source materials, but still. No matter...  And them wanting to conquer the other. Typical idiots. 

Continuing on, I just adore Pidge’s excitement, especially about his brother. And that flashback was even more adorable since I’ve literally only seen like two stills from it. I loved it! And Lance and Wolo pulling Cliff into the pool. That was amusing. If I were Cliff, I wouldn’t trust them around a pool again. Or push them in the next time for funsies.  And Allura wants girl time with the ladies. Yes, let her enjoy girl time! 

Seeing Keith’s childhood memories/dream. Poor baby. He needs to be hugged and told that it will all be okay. I expected a normal princess kidnapping. I did not expect Haggar to steal Allura’s spirit. Good way to catch me by surprise, Voltron.  But can I just say Pidge listening for Allura’s heartbeat? I mean, it’s pretty innocent, but boobs. Resting his head on her chest. You were quick to decide that, Pidge, instead of checking for her pulse in general. But we still love you, buddy. And with Alfor taking Keith to find Allura, his “yes” as they disappear was just way too creepy. It did not sound right... And Keith taken to a forest. Be brave, Keith! With such a place being conquered by courage and imagination, I’m  sure I’d be fine. It’d be a walk in the park. 

Allura really doesn’t give up on others, huh? Always hoping for the good in others. Good for her, though, at least she still tries.  Though Haggar used to be good? And it was Zarkon’s fault she became who she was? Huh. Intriguing.  When Lance, Hunk, and Pidge were in trouble thanks to Cossack, I had honestly hoped that the vehicle team would show up and assist them. Lance finding a way to fight back when Cossack tried to turn them into a crane game was good, too.

It was nice being able to see the two Voltrons side by side. I’d love more of that, but alas. I shall live with this.  And Lotor making his own robeast Voltron... it just has me thinking of VLD with Lotor making the Sincline mech. Now seeing this, I’m definitely seeing the reference there. Very nice. I’mma be honest. Coran and Hawkins should have gotten their rears in gear sooner to protect the planet/base and fight off the Drules. They shouldn’t have waited for the others to point out that they need backup in keeping things safe. Really dudes?!  Lotor shouts out his moves though in control. He reminds me of an episode of Pokemon where Meowth was battling for his right to keep Togepi. And then he has the nerve to complain about the others ganging up on him being unfair. Dude, you’ve never been fair before. Pot, meet kettle. 

Haggar going to trick Zarkon, making herself young and beautiful. Zarkon is a total creeper. Though I wish I knew what happened next with that. I want to know how that interaction ends. Though I guess I can daydream and assume. 

Ah, and everything ends, everyone is happy and shaking hands. But I sure wish we had more Pidge and Chip interactions. I love the lads. 

Anyway! That be it! Voltron: Defender of the Universe and Fleet of Doom is complete! I surprisingly got through all of this. I’ll admit, sometimes my brain just screamed, especially at voices or 80s frequencies, but I made it through. And I actually enjoyed the series overall.