So Netflix in the US has aired Voltron: Legendary Defender today. It actually was up at around 3 in the morning where I live and I binge watch the whole thing. And I have to say, even though I'm still tired as of this recording and my eyes are burning red, it's all worth it.
Now since there are so many versions of the franchise, I will refer to the Netflix series as "Legendary Defender", while the original series, which is itself an adaptation of the GoLion anime, I will refer to as "Defender of The Universe".
If you've seen the past incarnations of Voltron, or even the original GoLion anime, you have a good idea of the general plot of this latest series. If this is your first entry into the Voltron franchise, you're in for a treat. This is especially if you happen to be a fan of Nickelodeon's Avatar franchise, as Legendary Defender is co-produced by Joaquin dos Santos and Lauren Montgomery, who together not only worked on The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, but also Young Justice, a number of animated films for DC comics, and Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. What made those other shows great, they carry it in Legendary Defender. However, I wouldn't call it a perfect show.
The best way I can describe Legendary Defender is that it is The Legend of Korra with Giant Robots and a sausage fest. Now for anyone who's complaining that the team is an all-boys team (which I personally see nothing wrong with it. It IS an action-adventure mecha series, after all.), don't worry. There is going to be a change in the roster that surprises even those who know the franchise all too well. As such, there is a feeling that you're watching a sort of a spiritual successor to the Avatar franchise in Legendary Defender. Lance, in particular has his character so heavily inspired by The Last Airbender's Sokka, you would think he's the exact same character.
Like the Avatar franchise, there is a significant amount of light-heartedness and comedy that helps you warm up to the series, followed by the action and drama of its core characters. Lance again, thanks to his character and charisma, would obviously be a fan-favorite. And even more so as he is played by Adventure Time's Jeremy Shada. I really give a lot of credit to Shada for playing the character as he sounds completely different from that of Finn The Human. Though there are times you will hear Shada sounding like Ooo's champion.
I personally find my favorite in Takashi Shirogane, or Shiro in this series played by Josh Keaton. Not only was he a nod to the original character in GoLion aka Sven in Defender of The Universe, for a character that's the team leader, he plays such a grand role and I really like him for it. Metaphorically speaking, he is like the modern version of Kambei from Seven Samurai, or if you prefer, a lot like Optimus Prime in every sense of the word, yet still have issues of his own that makes him quite vulnerable.
Giving Shiro the team leader role actually suits him much better than Keith, who is the traditional leader in Defender of The Universe and other incarnations. Keith being a hot-headed loner instead of being the leader is actually a welcome change, as the Keith in other versions of Voltron sans Defender of The Universe is, well, terrible.
Furthermore, the Voltron team's persona, while designated to being like a Super Sentai or Power Rangers group, of which I expect as such, their personas compliment one another to a point of being symbiotic. Though it's not always the case.
More often than not, you will see pairings of Lance and Keith together, as well as Shiro and Pidge. And believe me, not long after the show finally premiered, I'm already seeing fan art pairings of the characters. Even for a straight guy like me, I am all for a Shiro x Pidge shipping because "they have a great chemistry".
For mecha afficionados like myself, I find it surprising that much of the premise of Legendary Defender comes more from the GoLion anime than Defender of The Universe. The staff behind Legendary Defender also appears to have taken quite the time to look at other mecha shows and applied those elements in this production, but arranged to suit the modern audience.
The showrunners also try to make Legendary Defender slightly more realistic. What I mean by that is, for example, in the Power Rangers franchise, when the Rangers get on their Megazord, it's assumed they already know how to operate it and use its weapons even if it's their very first time. In Legendary Defender, the team tries to learn more about Voltron as the season progresses, learning more weapons and abilities along the way. And just because it's described as the most powerful robot in the known universe (which it does), the enemy giant robots are no pushovers either. Furthermore, the first season of Legendary Defender is actually one huge story arc divided into a series of mini arcs. So there is a lot of continuity going on with barely anything that would be a stand-alone or "filler" episode.
And I must say, I love the Voltron design. It has that look and feel of a true Super Robot that you can also imagine as a toy with the combining lions. I also love the CG battle scenes as it's smooth in its execution and looks amazing that you can watch it again even if it's many years later.
Oh and if you are a die-hard fan of 80's anime, there are quite a number of cameo appearances and other easter eggs if you can spot them.
Despite all the raves I give for Legendary Defender, it does have a number of problems. One, for a series that is one long narrative, we know very little about Voltron itself and its origins, as well as that of King Zarkon. I am hoping, however, that the next season takes us deeper into that, especially given the season finale's revelation.
This part, I will include spoilers, but certain elements of the plot are very questionable. In the first episode, when Princess Allura suggests to use Voltron to fight Zarkon head-on because it's the most powerful weapon in the universe, her father instead chose to split the robot and hide it across the cosmos, for no apparent reason. That was very idiotic for a king, and from the writers who made that scenario. And you'll be seeing similar plotholes a lot. The show also suffers from their dialogue that makes me cringe every time they made those quotes, like the show is somehow still stuck in the 80's or something and is aimed at 5 year olds.
I would say episodes 6-9 are the weakest of the bunch. They don't provide the excitement and interest like I thought it would. You need to watch them still because they are part of the greater narrative.
Because this is an American cartoon and not a Japanese one, death is taboo unless the one who dies is either a) a villain; b) a non-organic being; or c) a very minor character nobody cares about. Legendary Defender isn't as mature-themed as Legend of Korra or Batman: The Animated Series, either.
And I really, REALLY, hate the soundtrack. There is no theme song and all you get is just generic background music. It's so bland it actually kills off any excitement and anticipation for the show. And because Dreamworks isn't afraid to have a dragon burn you into crisp when it comes to distributing content, I can't post how the Voltron combination sequence would look like using the Opening theme to GoLion, which I find it a thousand times BETTER than their stock music. So if you want to check it out, you can visit my post here.
Finally, the season is incredibly short at just 11 episodes (12 if you divide the pilot into two). So it feels like you were left hanging by the end of the run.
Having said all of that, and that it's not exactly THE definitive mecha series, I have to give kudos to the showrunners and everyone behind Legendary Defender, as this essentially gives justice to both Defender of The Universe and the GoLion anime. If you enjoyed watching the latter two, you will love this one as it is the best incarnation of the bunch. If you're a mecha fan, you will also dig in. If this is your first entry into Voltron, or giant mecha in general, you will have a good time watching it. On a scale of 1 to 5, I give Voltron: Legendary Defender Season 1, a 4 out of 5.
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