#vld meta

And this is actually SO funny because I'M HAVING A BLAST

This is one of those "filler" episodes that's just pure fun to watch

I don't want episodes like that to EVER END. i want more, i want that slow pace forever in this show with these characters

anyway this entire scene is so absurd in context that I can't help but love it

first of all

isn't this kind of out of character for keith??????

guess not because it's literally canon

are you seriously telling me Keith saw Lance getting into the elevator and deliberately stopped it so they could ride together?

He couldv e literally just wait five seconds for the next elevator

but no.

lmao

so I guess Lance's presence doesn't actually bother him that much anymore??

but still he's like "we will stay far away from eachother"

well yeah okay whathever you say tsundere king

That said I honestly don't think this scene adds much to their relationship by itself lmao

I love it because it's absolutely hilarious but I don't think it tells us anything fundamentally new

ALSO

i feel like this whole sequence is just one giant fanservice scene LMAOOOOO.

did they really have to spend the ENTIRE episode basically half naked????????

and while we're here...........

Why do these boys both look MALNOURISHED????

okay Keith spent who knows how long surviving alone in the desert so Ill give him a pass

but they've been living in the castle for at least a few weeks by now right??

These are supposed to be 17-18 year olds who train constantly

my guess is that this is just a stylized animation thing because the episode is comedic

or maybe they deliberately avoided giving them too much muscle definition so the scene wouldn't become an accidental thirst trap lmao

but in that case they could've just given them T-SHIRTS??????

anyway

The only thing in this scene that I actually find kind of interesting is this:

because look

Keith shoves Lance too hard

meanwhile Lance is not shoving Keith hard enough

you get it?????????

that's literally their entire dynamic wink wink

Overall though this whole sequence is absolutely ridiculous and I love every second of it

If I had to take anything away from it it'd mostly be how much their relationship has changed

It's almost tsundere at this point 💀

They still annoy each other constantly, still bicker

but at the same time...

...neither of them actually seems bothered by the other's company anymore

If anything they're kind of even enjoying each other's presence

And then they spend the rest of the episode piloting drones while still wearing swim trunks with towels around their necks

THIS IS SO SILLY

what is this show

hunk wearing the apron is also sending me

anyway

I actually have SO much to say about how Keith and Lance's relationship has been changing lately but I think I'm going to wait a little longer before writing another giant essay.

It feels like there are dozens of tiny interactions that don't mean much individually but together they're slowly building into something much bigger. it's literally like... slow burn.

so

Ahem.

Keith helped the Blade of Marmora reform for relief efforts. Lance runs a farm back at home on his home planet.

Smash their endings together and it makes a little more sense.

Keith running the BOM by himself doesn't make sense as he never wanted to lead in the first place, hence why he rejected becoming leader of the Galra Empire.

Plus, he doesn't have a stable home in his ending + nature.

"I like it out here, it's quiet." (Greening The Cube, S2E4)

Lance says he 'helps' (quote for quote) run a small farm back on his home planet with his family, as he explains to the kids in the final episode.

That doesn't mean he's there ALL the time.

"It's a simple life, just the way I like it." (The End is the Beginning, S8E13)

Lance likes humanitarian work (look at that smile!), as shown in the episode where Keith leaves for the Blades.

(Code of Honour, S4E1)

Keith 'helped' reform the BOM. There was other people involved who lead this transition. Notably, it also means he wasn't there all the time; it's just the visual cue of the leader robes that implies he's leading the BOM.

It could have been Krolia & Kolivan that requested this or are the ones initiating the front lines in restoring the BOM...

However, they left to revive the BOM; not reform the Blades, as per what Krolia says to Kolivan in this episode.

(The Ruins, S7E5)

...AND they became representatives of the Galactic Coalition by the end of the show.

It does not mention the Blade of Marmora once.

Additionally, Keith & Lance's outfits match each other at the reunion dinner on the anniversary of Allura's Day.

They look cosy, casual, and most importantly: Coordinated™

Why would they be matching for the reunion dinner unless they were in constant communication, or close enough to coordinate this attire in a short time frame?

This would be right before Keith had reformed the blades, and after Keith's speech on the Kral Zera.

TL;DR:

1) Keith helped reform the BOM (with Lance's support / assistance) 2) Lance provided Keith a home that's quiet in nature on Earth. 3) Keith provides Lance a wonderful purpose outside of the farm. 4) Lance spreads Allura's message while surrounding himself with the things he loves. 5) They lead a simple life together on the farm AND help the BOM from time to time as the farm becomes a prime hub for supplies towards humanitarian relief across the universe.

This opens the door to Lance and Keith becoming teachers and mentors that contributes to and spreads Allura's message across the universe in meaningful ways that fulfils both of them.

Keith and Lance becoming teachers is such a good post-canon AU by the way, and we don't talk about that enough.

It means Keith doesn't have to lead the Blade of Marmora forever; he can settle down and relax in the quiet within nature.

It means Lance gets to contribute in impactful ways and fulfil that sense of adventure he's always seeking with the BOM by providing universal relief support.

OR... they can both settle down with family later down the track on the farm, because it is their home.

They fill each other's gaps and support each other as friends, co-leaders, husbands; however you want to see it. Thank you for coming to my ted talk 🙇‍♀️ 🎤

P.S. Look at how wonderful and happy they look post-canon.

Or how Adam intentionally became the trigger that ruined the friendship/relationship between Lance and Keith at the Garrison because of his own trauma over losing Shiro.

The thing is, Adam is an openly kind professor who is adored and respected by everyone. He's the one who makes you feel heard, understood, and valued. And Lance, of course, was no exception. Until the Kerberos mission.

At first, everyone chalked it up to grief and shock — it wasn't a secret that there was something between Adam and Shiro — but then the rumors started. "Keith is Professor Adam's favorite," and "Professor Adam hates Lance." Because while Iverson's criticism was aimed at all the cadets, Adam's criticism became personal. It was a shift that Lance simply couldn't explain to himself, to Hunk, or to the other cadets who gathered the courage to ask, "Where did you mess up so badly?"

The truth is that Adam, while trying to look out for Keith — the only thing he had left of Shiro — notices this budding dynamic. A reckless, incredibly talented pilot and a boy with a big heart who will always gravitate towards him. Adam knew how this story ends. It ends with an empty casket and a broken heart. And in his desperate, traumatized state, Adam decided: "I won't let history repeat itself."

A Narrative Perspective

Let’s set aside the fact that Keith and Allura have been a canon couple for 30ish years across multiple iterations of the Voltron franchise before VLD was even a thought. On storytelling merit alone, Kallura should have been the VLD's endgame romance, not Allurance. It is, in my opinion, the most satisfying Voltron ship.

It all starts with Shiro’s return to Earth, yes. But the real momentum begins with Keith, whose relentless pursuit of the source of the energy he senses leads all of the Paladins to the Blue Lion, setting the entire story in motion. Without him, the team wouldn’t have formed. No Voltron, no universe-saving coalition.

From there, Keith and Allura’s stories interweave in narratively rich and emotionally meaningful ways.

okay so like……. Do y’all remember the scene in season 4, ep 1, “code of honor” where Kolivan physically drags Keith out of the room from saving the other BoM member (I believe his name was Regris)?

This moment. Right here.

Kolivan KNOWS Regris will die. He’s fully aware Keith will too, if he allows Keith to go back inside for Regris. (Then he’ll be down two soldiers instead of one.)

Obviously the VLD fandom is not the best (lol that’s putting it mildly) but one of the things I especially don’t like is that some people tend to soften Kolivan far too early. He starts out (and for most part, continues to be) as a highly tactical, analytical leader who leaves no room for emotion. He’s literally told Keith (NUMEROUS TIMES!!) things along the lines of “emotions are a luxury we cannot afford.” He is pragmatic and extremely logical, allowing no time for big dramatic *feelings*.

personally I headcanon that it’s because he’s probably been fighting this battle for too long. He shows hints of this too. He’s tired, and probably emotionally broken. He might have even lost friends, family, and who knows how many other Marmoran members to this war. He tells Shiro in the first episode we meet him, “So is the fight against the Galra. And yet that is the battle we face,” or smth along those lines, when Shiro points out Keith’s trials are unfair. He sounds weary and exhausted in this moment. He KNOWS there will be too much bloodshed.

I dig into this in my own fic, so again, part of this is just speculation on my part, but I really wholeheartedly believe that Kolivan is a hardened soldier of war who’s just lost too much and sacrificed too many lives. He has a very, very small, soft, compassionate core that is absolutely drenched and BURIED under war strategies and military leadership. It only very slightly begins to show up in later seasons— the biggest hint we get is when he comes and waits for Keith to wake up in season seven’s finale with Krolia. And that’s after THREE SEASONS of knowing this guy.

idk, this is just smth that hit me while I was rewriting the Kral Zera episode for my fic. Like, Kolivan is a smart leader, but it probably didn’t come without a cost. People aren’t born to be so analytical. We’re taught to value feelings and emotions. Kolivan doesn’t, not because he doesn’t care or because he’s cruel, but because he’s most likely just been through too much.

(which allows for SO MANY angst opportunities lol. But anyway.)

His "arc" is supposed to be "cocky and immature teenager grows from his need for glory into a reliable team member"

And he does! He becomes Keith's right hand man, taking charge in battle, covering the team's backs and becoming an emotional support for other members when the time was needed.

But he is also a Comedic Relief™

Other characters have comedic relief moments too, like Hunk's love for food, Pidge's excitement about tech, Keith being socially awkward, etc.

And as aggravating as Hunk's fat jokes can be they don't contradict the fact that he is a brilliant engineer and became a brave paladin. Keith's social awkwardness doesn't contradict the fact that he became a capable leader.

But then you have Pidge and Hunk, making fun of Lance being "naturally dumb", and then a space deity calling him "the dumb one"one moment then following Lance's orders in battle and having him give emotional speeches to others the other.

The writers want us to take him seriously and see he is growing only to make fun of him when its needed for a laugh.

I feel the episode The Grudge is a good example of this: