Voltron: Defender of the Universe is one of the most notable 80’s
cartoon reruns I had watched when I was a kid in the 90’s. Outside of Power Rangers and Super
Sentai, it was my first encounter with the “piloted, themed vehicles
combining into a giant robot” trope.
However, when its reboot Voltron: Legendary
Defender first aired last year, I wasn’t too enamored to check it out
immediately. It took me a few months
after season two ended (last January), and after seeing high praises for it here and there, before I decided to check it out and binge its 24 episodes
so far.
Now, Defender of the Universe will always have the nostalgic edge over Legendary Defender. But since the latter doesn’t have to use and
edit footage from a pre-existing foreign show, as what the former had to do
(from a Japanese anime called Beast King
GoLion), it allows the writing to make the storylines more coherent and
sensible, infuse humor, provide sharper dialogue, and develop more organic
and interesting character arcs. In
addition, the advantage of modern animation (which is done by Studio Mir, the
same guys behind The Legend of Korra)
makes the latter’s action scenes more exciting than what the former had to offer.
That said, I can’t really say if
the latter is superior to the original.
Again, the nostalgia factors are too strong. For one, no matter how catchy the intro theme
of Legendary Defender is, it’s simply
impossible to match the original’s iconic, LSS-inducing theme. Also, the original Voltron sequence is much
more stirring with Keith’s spoken checklist pre-transformation (“Ready to form
Voltron! Activate interlocks. Dyna-therms connected. Infra-cells up. Mega-thrusters
are go.”), the team’s affirmation yell (“Let’s go, Voltron!”), and Keith’s cheesy transformation narration (“Form feet and legs. Form arms and body. And
I'll form the head!”).
Speaking of Keith, one of Legendary Defender’s significant spins is that he isn’t the leader of the Voltron
team. And instead of Sven being part of
the original five, a new character named Shiro is in it, who serves as
the leader (Shiro’s full name is Takaeshi Shirogane, which happens to be the
original name of the Sven character in the Japanese anime). However, it has been heavily implied that
Keith could eventually become the leader (maybe in season 3?), which opens the
possibility of Princess Allura piloting one of the Lions, as it was in the
original when Sven gets “injured” (in the original Japanese anime, he was
killed).
So with Shiro serving as leader, getting the Black Lion, the distribution of the lions is also different: Keith has the Red (instead of Black. Is that because the original wore red anyway?), while Lance has the Blue (the original had the Red). Also, Legendary Defender’s version of Pidge is revealed to be a girl (real name “Katie”) disguising as a boy a few episodes into the first season.
So with Shiro serving as leader, getting the Black Lion, the distribution of the lions is also different: Keith has the Red (instead of Black. Is that because the original wore red anyway?), while Lance has the Blue (the original had the Red). Also, Legendary Defender’s version of Pidge is revealed to be a girl (real name “Katie”) disguising as a boy a few episodes into the first season.
I actually found the changes made
quite amusing and interesting. Moreover,
I actually like the new versions of the characters more than the original, as they
are more well-realized and quirky, and are given more “superhero” action
moments as individuals outside their Lions rather than be exclusively portrayed
as pilots-inside-the-Lions episode in, episode out.
I also like the storytelling structure
more. Instead of doing the monster-of-the-episode
plot format, the series follows a singular, linear, main narrative broken into
serialized parts. This removes the traditional
predictability of an episode (i.e. new monster arrives; Voltron team intercepts
it, eventually forms Voltron; destroy the monster with a Blazing Sword; the
end), but instead produces a faster pace for the overarching storyline,
compelling character development, and a binge-worthy mood (as how all Netflix
shows are designed).
Voltron: Legendary Defender has tremendously likable characters, glorious
action, thoughtful “G” comedy, and absorbing storytelling. It doesn’t overdo pushing audience’s nostalgic buttons, but balances references
to Defender of the Universe and doing
its own thing. As a result of all these, it’s extremely
entertaining and addicting. And it only
gets better and better as it progresses.
Looking forward to season three
later this September!
Post-script:
I wish Voltron: Legendary Defender will also reference or even fully feature the Vehicle Force Voltron. Though the Lion Force Voltron is more popular, I actually like the Vehicle Force Voltron more.
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