#vld 2x07
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VLD2x07 – “Space Mall”
2x07 – “Space Mall”
Team Voltron currently has two issues: One, the struggle between Shiro and Zarkon in bonding with the Black Lion, and two, needing new lenses for the teludav. Coran has an idea about the latter. I love the goofy look on Coran’s face in the photograph of him shopping, and I love Alfor smiling at Coran in the background of that image.
Lance continues his overbearing flirting with Allura. She might not be into Lance, but she is into the idea of buying something sparkly. Coran’s inner patriarchy shows itself in his trying to override Allura’s agency and say she can’t go shopping. While Shiro goes to bond with Black, Coran and the other Paladins leave for shopping, and Allura is left alone with the mice. Sigh.
Shiro gets in Black and tries to meditate “bond,” and Black responds by blasting off into space.
The Space Mall is very much a mall environment. I really like the atmospherics of the location. It makes me feel like the time I spent in malls as a kid/teen. Coran has costumes/disguises for them to wear, and Keith’s is particularly funny to me. Coran leaves the Paladins, who immediately trash their disguises. The Galra mallcop’s thinking the Paladin’s normal look is indicative of pirates disguising themselves as normal shoppers, his monolog in general, and his locker poster of Zarkon are all funny.
The Black Lion has brought Shiro to a destroyed planet. Daibazaal, homeworld of the Galra. The planet being oddly shaped in its destruction is fine, but then we get the planet as it was 10,000 years ago through Black’s eyes. The way Daibazaal looked in the past is yet another instance of this show presenting as planets things that are not shaped like planets.
Hunk finds the food court and samples food. While this is another instance of Hunk = food, this isn’t bothersome because he’s clearly sampling food, he’s not just eating. This is about cultural exploration. He ends up sampling the wrong food and, having no money to pay for what wasn’t actually a sample, is chained into dishwashing by the restaurant proprietor Sal of Vrepit Sal’s.
Both the mallcop Varkon and Sal, though comical characters, are great in diversifying the Galra as a species.
The knife demonstration is absurd, but still kind of funny. “How many times do you have to fight off a charging rock monster and then go immediately to a picnic?” The droning, wrote recitation sound of the voice acting is what sells this absurdity to me, I think. Keith asks the salesman about the knife/sword that his thoughts have been on lately. The salesman accuses Keith of having stolen it, but Keith refuses to tell him where he got it.
Black shows Shiro the “comet” that crashed on Daibazaal and that the Lions were built out of it. Okay, bad science once again. The thing that hit Daibazaal, that the Lions were made from, that we see other chunks of metal like it in future episodes: That is not a comet. A comet is not made of metal or rock, they’re made mostly of ice. They have some particulate dust and organic compounds mixed in, but they’re mostly ice. They’re even jokingly referred to as dirty snowballs. Some comets have a lower density than that of water, suggesting some have interiors that aren’t solid. Calling this chunk of magic space metal a “comet” is scientifically illiterate. They could have called this chunk of metal an asteroid, and that would have worked. But a comet? No.
Zarkon has essentially abused the Black Lion. Shiro, in trying to bond more with Black, is essentially asking Black to tell him its story. That’s part of processing past trauma: talking about it. Talking about trauma promotes bonding. I really like that this is an element to how the show depicts Shiro and Black growing closer together.
The mice try to entertain Allura, and I love the look of joy on her face as they do so.
Pidge needing to use the toilet, but not being able to interpret the signs on the wall is relatable to me. There is something about public restrooms that unnerves me. It would have been nice if the show hadn’t defaulted to a gender binary in presenting these two toilet signs though. Aside from the fact that humans have more than a simple binary for gender, there is literally nothing that would necessitate that life evolved on other planets would have a binary for gender or sex.
Of course, Lance wants to flirt with girls, but at least it makes sense in a way here in a mall. The alien selling Earth stuff is fantastically odd. Pidge freaks over seeing a video game she’s into. And the game system that it plays on has a game glove. I’m old enough to remember the old NES and its power glove, so this hits me in a personal spot. I never had the power glove though; my experiences with anything other than the standard NES controller never seemed to go well.
“Sustenance unit: complete. Ingest,” says Sal. Again, the voice is what sells it for me. Unfortunate for Sal, his chef-bot breaks, and Hunk volunteers to take charge. He cooks great food, and Sal likes what’s happening. Hunk uses a word here – “provide” – that I think also gets to some of what he likes about cooking. Through food, he can feel like he is providing something to others. He can find a sense of purpose in it. This is how to display the food side of Hunk in a way that actually functions as characterization.
Black shows Shiro that it has the ability to generate wings. Zarkon psychically interferes, knocking Shiro into some kind of astral/psychic space with Zarkon. They fight in a beautiful, visually dynamic way. It’s kind of dissonant to have this big dramatic story going on with Shiro and the comic mall story. That’s probably my biggest complaint about the episode. Issues with tone like this is not limited to this episode, as the previous episodes have shown more than once.
Hunk has totally changed things at Vrepit Sal’s. Hunk is aggressive, and Sal is responding as if he’s a military subordinate to Hunk. I find the bit of development between their two characters to be endearing. I don’t know, I just kind of really like Sal. The mallcop has to go and interrupt things, threaten Hunk, who then flees.
Zarkon and Shiro trade comments as well as blows. Zarkon taunts Shiro, saying, “You could never take my place as the head of Voltron.” Shiro’s fight is literally to be the head of Voltron as proclaimed here by the main antagonist. Shiro counters that Zarkon is “no Paladin,” and Zarkon even briefly has a look of concern, almost disbelief on his face. He knows there is a risk Shiro can break Black free from Zarkon’s control. “You have no idea how to command a weapon like this,” Zarkon says. Shiro retorts, “No one commands the Black Lion!” Go Shiro, go!! These two lines demonstrate the significant difference in their respective relationships with Black. Zarkon’s, like general Galra philosophy, is about domination. Shiro’s is about mutual respect and cooperation, about teamwork. Shiro continues, “It’s not about power, it’s about earning each other’s trust.” Black’s eyes glow, showing it concurs with Shiro. It enters the psychic space and blasts Zarkon. Black clearly prefers Shiro!
And then there’s the twist: Black, and thus Shiro sitting inside it, never left the Castle Ship. They’re still in the docking bay. I actually like this fake-out, though I don’t know how to articulate why. I think maybe it emphasizes again that this was significantly about Black telling its story to Shiro.
Pidge and Lance have been taking money from the fountain. Coins in the fountain is so iconic from my time at the mall as a kid and teen. I can’t say I know of any malls currently that still have fountains though. Keith and Hunk run into each other. Pidge and Lance buy their game stuff, receiving a free Kaltenecker, aka a cow. They all end up being chased by the mallcop.
Coran’s whole shopping at the Unilu shop is hilarious. I love the bartering. A handful of pocket lint. First-born child. A used handkerchief. Left foot. Sing a song. Being a butler for a year. The back and forth is wild. I love it.
The crew gets back to the Castle and whoa: Allura’s hair!
Shiro: “Is that a cow?” Lance: “Mmhmm. His name is Kaltenecker.” This cow has an utter, so is he transgender?
With Shiro bonded more with Black, he’s ready to head to the headquarters of the Blade of Marmora.
A lot of when this show does odd, humor-specific episodes, I don’t like them. This one is different though. I actually find a lot of this one funny. I still contend that pairing the comedy of the mall with the drama of Shiro’s struggle does create some tonal whiplash though. While I might enjoy the humor of the episode, the Shiro/Black Lion/Zarkon part of this episode is still the best part. It’s so clear what the contention is between Shiro and Zarkon that their conflict becomes elegant in a way. It’s some of the best storytelling this show ever did.
#voltron legendary defender#voltron#vld#voltron criticism#vld criticism#voltron critical#vld critical#vld season 2#vld 2x07#commentary
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Shiro and Lance in season 2 [← | →]
#voltronedit#voltron legendary defender#takashi shirogane#vld lance#shance#vld 2x04#vld 2x06#vld 2x07#vld 2x08#vld 2x10#vld 2x11#my gifs
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For those who don’t have Netflix and cannot hear all the other languages available (I personally have seen Voltron in English, French, Japanese, German and Spanish for the lols) here I leave this iconic scene in my language: spanish xD (I know the original voices are the best, this is just for fun)
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fic masterpost: we came from the earth (but we belong to the sky) // VLD rewrite with @otterknowbynow
[in chronological order, * denotes WIP]
cactus blossoms (or: some can only bloom with water from the desert sky)* - pre-relationship adam&shiro, during their days as students at the garrison. precanon. read all on ao3 | chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | TBA
I’ll Ask Once More for Clarity (if only to be sure) - one shot ft a panicked conversation, an awkward confession, and a first kiss (adam/shiro). precanon. AO3 | tumblr
Will Break for Food [Otter]- First-year Hunk convinces Lance to sneak down to the kitchens with him for a late night snack. precanon. AO3 | tumblr
I don’t want your pity, but sympathy can’t hurt - one shot sickfic, first-year lance is sick and gets some comfort from his best friend. precanon. AO3 | tumblr
The Last Thousand Days, The First Ten [Otter] - “Years before and days after one of the defining moments of Adam’s life.” precanon. AO3 | tumblr
what’s in a name (i still remain the same) - better alternate version of the scene where Shiro tells Pidge he knows her real name. set at the end of 1x05. AO3 | tumblr
an interpersonal demonstration of newton’s third law - lance teases pidge and accidentally hits a sore spot. set between 1x05 and 1x06. AO3 | tumblr
With No Place to Go [Otter] - coran and allura, coping with the loss of alfor’s AI. Set after 1x11, up through 2x04. AO3 | tumblr
you’d give your eyeteeth just to know the truth - keith, reflecting. set after 2x03. AO3 | tumblr
Altean Home Economics* [Otter] - hunk experiments in the castle kitchen, with help from the rest of the crew. set between 2x07 and 2x08. read all on AO3 | chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | TBA
On the Shoreline [Otter] - blue lion introspection about her bond with lance. AO3 | tumblr
Where Loyalty Lies* - episodic, keith and the blades visit a mining station, intending to gather intel and take out the operation, and find a surprise that changes the mission. set sometime after 3x03. read all on ao3 | prologue | chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | TBA
T’as de la place sur la canapé [Otter] - the team takes a nap. set between s3 and s4. AO3 | tumblr
Gotcha Day [Otter] - lance decides kaltenecker (and the team) needs a puppy friend. that’s not exactly what they end up getting. set between s3 and s4. read all on ao3 | chapter 1 | 2 | 3
#we came from the earth (but we belong to the sky)#belong to the sky verse#better voltron verse#willwrites#so i can find this again
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Pidge 2x07 more
Space mall pirates/ Can’t decide / Oh my gosh / We have to have this / drags Lance away / Don’t sell that / We’re so close / Look / Yeah let’s get this baby set up / Eye twitching
#pidge#voltron#vld gif#Bex Taylor-Klaus#vld s2#season 2#2x07#gif#gifs#bex tk#space mall#games console#voltron season 2
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voltron ask game
was tagged by the lovely @onemerryjester, @smolsarcasticraspberry, @moonbdreamin, and @littlespacestars. thanks guys!
How did you discover the show?
i heard that studio mir was animating it, and as i love both legend of korra and dreamworks, i decided to check it out.
Was it love at first sight or did it take you a while to get into the show?
i watched the first episode, and thought it was pretty good, but i wasn’t invested until episode three of the first season? episode two gave me a ship i latched onto really hard in shiro and allura, obviously, but episode three was the first hint at shiro’s backstory and that forming voltron wasn’t going to be the automatic solution to saving the day, which i liked. then in 1x04 “fall of the castle of lions” i saw the show wasn’t afraid to have the world go wrong all around its characters and have high stakes, so then i was sold.
Do you have a favorite episode?
anything shallura, shiro, or allura centric, basically, but here’s some season from season.
season one: 1x01 “rise of voltron,” 1x04 “fall of the castle of lions,” 1x09 “crystal venom,” 1x10 “collection and extraction,” 1x11 “the black paladin
season two: 2x03, “shiro’s escape,” 2x07 “space mall,” 2x12 “best laid plans,” 2x13 “blackout”
season three: none bc it was a shit season fight me
season four: 4x01 “code of honour,” 4x02 “reunion,” 4x06 “a new defender”
season five: 5x02 “blood duel,” 5x03 “postmortem,” 5x04 “kral zera,” 5x06 “the white lion”
Do you have a favorite Paladin?
Shiro, ultimately, but only the teensiest tiniest bit more than I love Allura.
Do you have a favorite Lion? (If it’s different from your fave Paladin, why?)
the black lion bc she deserves to be happy and the red lion bc she’s just trying to keep her idiot child alive (and yes all the lions are girls to me i’m always so taken aback whenever any of them are referred to as a boy, ESP the yellow lion vld can rip this headcanon out of my dead cold hands)
Do you have a favorite villain?
Haggar. I love her magic and design, her betrayal of her people and her obsession with quintessence. I was always fascinated by how much stronger she seemingly was than Zarkon, yet she served him as an advisor anyway, plus her having been the one to experiment on Shiro kept her as a deeply personal threat in s1, rather than Zarkon’s more distant presence, I guess? I also find Zarkon and Lotor very interesting of course, and I adore the dynamic between all three of them in all its messed up, back-stabbing glory, but yeah, Haggar’s my fave.
Do you have a favorite Alien Race (Recurring and/or minor)
Alteans, Balmerans, and the Galra. I love the first two for their growing culture and values, as well as aesthetic. I’ve never seen an alien race designed like the Balmerans before, and I love elves, so self-explanatory. I love the Galra for the different variations for their race, and I would love to know more about how their culture works.
Favorite side/other character(s) - Rebels, Generals, Blade of Marmora, Garrison, etc?
Shay and Axca. I also have a soft spot for Kolivan.
How/Why did you join the fandom?
I joined the fandom because I had found A Relationship to latch onto. Sometimes I enjoy relationships more lowkey, but I’m not interested/invested enough to seek more things out for them -- ie. Jake and Amy from B99. But when I do get attached, it is Fast and often extremely dedicated. What Relationships (both shipping, and brotps) catch my fancy can fluxuate, as a couple with the tropes I love might enrapture me and another one may not and there’s not exactly a rhyme or reason to it (maybe chemistry or stakes?? idk) but yeah, Shallura was definitely one since 1x02, “Only Shiro is in uniform” and by the end of s1, I knew I was done for. I just had to find my people, then.
Care to share your favorite headcanon?
Well as previously mentioned: the VLD Lions are genderless bc they’re not humans, firstly, and not alive, just sentient. Allura’s mother knew Coran and Alfor also loved one another and she was cool and comfortable with it. Shiro was raised by his mother and grandmother, his father having been a war hero / pilot who died in an accident when he was little. I also headcanon Shiro as bi, Allura as pan (or at least, the closest word we’d have for it), that Hunk has two moms (one’s a cook and one’s an engineer). I also love the idea of Haggar having been the cousin of Allura’s mother, but I think that will undeniably stay fanon only? I still love it tho.
What do you think is the best part of the show?
I think Shiro and Allura’s relationship is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. The animation from Studio Mir is always stunning, and the soundtrack really blows me out of the water. I’ve also really enjoyed the team as a whole found family group, and I adore all and any of Coran’s relationships, and Pidge and Hunk’s friendship <33
Any hopes and wishes for future episodes/seasons?
With s6 around the corner, I’d love / know that Operation Kuron is finally going to come to light, so that’s squared off. I’d love a bit more backstory for Shiro, and more information about Haggar’s druids because I find them fascinating. For Allura’s mom to have a name, and I think it would be really cool to have an episode, once the team is back in their original Lion lineup, to have either Keith or Lance be sick and have to sit a mission out, and have Allura take the helm of the Blue Lion again as a one-off.
Do you think you’ll stick it out until the end of the show?
Probably. Even if VLD does something that will make me drop it completely as Canon, ie. either Shiro or Allura (or any of the paladins, really) dying, or Shiro not being permanent BP, I’ll still watch and check in from time to time, just to see what enjoyment I can take from it. I mean, I’ve made it this long, and we all know bc Shallura are Idiots if they’re going to be canon they’ll only become so in the last episode. Plus, I really have been enjoying VLD again the past few seasons and I’ve missed that feeling, so I’m very happy rn with where the show is, even if it still isn’t perfect. So, long story short: I’ve been in this fandom since June 14th, 2016. I ain’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Idk who hasn’t been tagged yet? @shirofied, @materassassino and @braincoins and anyone else who wants to do so (if you’ve been double tagged, obvs don’t have to do the challenge again)
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Do you think that they will eventually kill off Keith? His anger issues and his willing to risk his life to save Shiro are going to get him killed.
No. I don’t think anyone in the main cast are going to get killed off at this point.
*looks at JDS & LM warningly*
In an interesting story, characters change and grow over time. Keith has a definite need to do this, and I think getting Mama back in the mix might help him. I can see the potential in him that Shiro saw, but it’s buried under his Issues and his unwillingness to fix them.
His main issue in regards to Voltron is how he pushes the team away. He goes off and does things on his own, he makes snap judgements (that only Shiro can rein in), etc. He leaps without looking a lot of the time, but Shiro was helping him deal with that (Patience yields focus).
Plus, there’s Keith’s bond with the Red Lion. We’ve seen Black protect Shiro a couple of times (1x03, 2x07) and Green protect Pidge (1x03), but Red spent most of season 2 going, “OH NO MY PALADIN HAS A PAPERCUT GO GO GO!” It was Red’s reaction to Keith that let the team know that Paladins and Lions can be linked over long distances (thus giving them the clue towards Zarkon & Black). We haven’t seen Red react that way with Lance (though, admittedly, Lance needs a lot less rescuing from his impulsive behavior). I think that, just as Shiro is the True Black Paladin, Keith is the True Red Paladin. (Lance is True Blue, and I don’t think Green & Yellow have ever been in doubt.)
I think once we get real Shiro back - whether it’s freeing him from brainwashing or finding him in the astral plane or whatever - Keith will come back to Team Voltron. I’m hoping that, just as his lack of parents may have sparked his lone wolf behavior, having Krolia back in his life will help him see the value of family - even/especially “found family” like the team.
Plus, Keith is heritage DotU character. I mean, technically they all are except Shiro, but Keith is KEITH with the mullet and all, even if VLD Shiro acts more like DotU Keith.
Thank you for asking me!! ^_^
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uhh keith, alan, lotor?
Keith:
The moment I loved him most:
There are so … so many moments that it’s pretty much impossible to pick just one. But the moments that immediately spring to mind are:
When he successfully helped the team escape from the Garrison in the first episode, complete with grinning as he drove his hoverbike off a cliff and told them to, “shut up and trust [him],” because he knew what he was doing (and he did it goddamn well).
Every single line of trying to get Red to accept him in the same episode. “Let’s get out of here, open up. ... It’s me, Keith. Your buddy. ... It’s meee! KEEIITH! Your---I. AM. YOUR. PALADIN! I’m bonding with you!!!” Just … it makes me laugh every single goddamn time, istg.
When he fought Zarkon one-on-one, both because he wanted to prevent Zarkon from getting his hands on the Black Lion (smart, because Black would have taken him back no questions asked, we all know she would have, consider this a callout for the Black Lion), and because he knew that if he killed Zarkon, it would deliver a massive blow to the Empire. (It also would have gotten us Prince Lotor a whole season earlier, so I mean … damn crying shame he didn’t win.) He was trying to do the Right thing, because that’s who he is, even if he got his ass kicked in the process.
E v e r y t h i n g pertaining to the Trials of Marmora. 2x08 is still probably my favorite episode in the show, though 3x04 comes awfully close. But seriously, from his sheer Determination in the Trials, to the way we see in multiple instances how he is willing to make personal sacrifices for both the greater good and others (he was willing to part with his dad, whom he dearly wanted to spend time with, in order to go help save civilians from the impending Galra invasion; he gave up his knife, which held answers about his past, so that Shiro wouldn’t risk his safety against the Marmorites). So many people have a misconception about Keith being selfish when he’s actually one of the most selfless people on the show, and this, the one of two episodes where he tried to do something for himself for once (the other being 2x07), directly shows exactly how selfless he is. It’s great.
Freeing Acxa in the Weblum, and especially everything pertaining to his partnership with her there. I also love his line to Hunk: “We can’t leave someone to die, even if they are Galra.” It shows where Keith’s morals and priorities lie, as well as (imo) foreshadows his reactions and opinions of characters to come.
“No one’s commanding me. I’m doing it.” Okay, as much as he was backtalking Kolivan here when all Kolivan was trying to do was not get him to sacrifice himself on what was pretty much a suicide mission (it ended up not being one, but the only reason why Keith didn’t die is because Thace was still alive and able to help him escape), it’s still just such a Moment™ for Keith. And need I remind you, no one commands the Black Lion …
His motivational speech to the team at the end of 3x03, right before they’re able to form Voltron (on their second attempt!). “This is our team! We have to believe in ourselves!” Everything about it was masterful. Keith learned from his mistakes and adapted on the spot and it was amazing.
Pretty much every instance of Keith supporting Allura in 3x04, but in particular: “Maybe things aren’t as black and white as she’s making them out to be.” Not only is it goddamn true, but once again, I feel that it foreshadows his reactions, opinions, and potential partnerships with characters to come.
WHEN HE STRAIGHT UP SWERVED VOLTRON OUT OF THE WAY OF ACXA’S BLAST IN 3x06 DESPITE HOW SHIREPLICA HAD BEEN YELLING AT HIM TO JUST “DEAL WITH THE CONSEQUENCES” OF TAKING THE HIT, LIKE WHAT A FUCKING BADASS, YOU GO, KEITH, YOU GO.
H o n e s t l y? His attempted self-sacrifice in 4x06. No, of course I don’t want him to die, but not only did he not die, but he was attempting to do something for the greater good once again. This isn’t new for him; he has always been like this. But it was such a poignant moment, because you see him think about it, you see him consider it, and even though he obviously doesn’t want to die (he cringes), he still chooses to make that dive because he feels that it’s the best shot they have at getting everyone else out alive. One Gryffindor to another, I can respect that.
The moment I hated him most:
I’ve never in my life hated Keith. However, I will say that I was cringing hard through most of 3x03, and that I had to keep pausing the episode several times, because even though I completely understand why he was behaving the way he was, I also knew that it would no doubt make the huge swathes of people in fandom who had been bashing him for months prior to that point and claiming that he could never be a leader feel vindicated, and the last thing I would ever want is for those people to feel validated in any way, shape, or form, particularly since that was abnormal for Keith, as he himself proved once he calmed down and corrected his behavior (and then proceeded to lead the team pretty flawlessly after that). Make no mistake, I by no means hated him, but rather I hated how I knew people were going to react to that episode (and believe me, I wasn’t wrong).
The moment I understood him most:
I mean, it’s a really long list, haha. The reason why I’m able to so easily peg that Keith has C-PTSD is because a lot of his behaviors, personality traits, and reactions to things are very similar to how I act. (The fact that I always score Keith on every “which VLD character are you” test, including the official ones, validates this claim, I feel.) But I think the three things that I understand the most are probably:
Keith is incredibly loyal, to a fault, and I’m not saying “to a fault” merely because it’s a phrase that gets used sometimes, but rather because I feel that this is an actual flaw of his, in the sense that it can, and will, and has hurt him. Keith is not afraid to call out those he cares about when he feels they’re wrong; he’ll stand up to them and voice his opinion, even though he will also step back and let the team proceed as they want when they inevitably dogpile against him and choose to do whatever they were originally planning anyway. However, it should be noted that when Keith speaks up and offers a contrary opinion or viewpoint, it’s pretty much always in relation to the greater plan at large; Keith doesn’t contradict others when they’re making assumptions about him, or when they’re criticizing him on a personal level. At best he’ll look annoyed, but at worst he just takes it, and this is especially true if it’s someone he really, truly cares about, someone that he feels really, truly cares about him in return. Keith’s loyalty doesn’t just extend to “I will go to bat for you in any way that’s necessary,” but also extends to, “I really trust your judgment and opinions, so I’m just going to assume you’re right, even if it makes me feel like garbage.” At most he tries to offer explanations for why he acted the way he did (“I thought I had it under control”), but he doesn’t defend himself beyond that, because he just assumes that this person he cares about is correct. And this is a problem not only because others aren’t always right when they assume the worst of him (actually, they’re usually wrong), but because it could lead to him being seriously hurt or taken advantage of. We would all hope that the people Keith lets be closest to him are people who are kind, supportive, and loving, but that might not always be the case. And speaking from personal experience here, as someone whose loyalty has gotten her used and abused in past relationships (not just by my biological mother—there have been others I won’t get into now), it can really, really fuck you over. Keith’s loyalty is a beautiful thing, but it’s also detrimental to him with the extent that he takes it, particularly when it’s paired with his actually low self-esteem (like, he knows what he’s capable of re: piloting and combat, but just look at how little belief he has in himself as a leader or Paladin). It actually makes him quite vulnerable, and since I have, as mentioned, been the victim of that in the past … yeah, I understand where he’s coming from, but it’s not a good place for him.
On that note: Keith admits in his vlog that he “has some walls up” and that he tends to push people away before they can reject him (as he feels they inevitably will), and oh buddy. Again, the situations that Keith and I have been through are not exactly the same, but we have a lot of the same symptoms for very similar reasons, and that’s one of them, for sure. I’ve noticed that, as far as I’m concerned, it has actually gotten progressively worse as I’ve gotten older. Like, although I was a lot more outwardly stand-offish as a teenager (my shields were a lot more visible when I was younger; I often seemed prickly and angry to people who didn’t know me), I was also more trusting. But, as I’ve gone through relationships with people who used and otherwise mistreated me (and one in particular), I’ve found maintaining relationships to be incredibly difficult, to the point where if things seem like they’re getting too serious, too fast, my brain just switches off without my being able to really control it, and I just start getting … really distant from people, emotionally. It’s an issue and I need to address it, but I don’t know how. I guess the good news is that, like Keith, I at least recognize that it’s an issue … but how to fix it is something I don’t know how to tackle. Either way, it makes forming and maintaining interpersonal relationships pretty much impossible, so … a.) thanks bunches, C-PTSD, and b.) I feel you, Keith. I feel you.
His straight up, hands down, refusal to quit until he sees that persisting past a certain point will put others in danger. Determination is really important to me, and I like to think that it’s because of my determination that I’ve made it as far as I have in life. Others have claimed that I’m stubborn to a fault, and yeah, probably, but I mean … well, let’s just say that I relate to Keith in that respect, too.
This was really long, so the rest are going under a cut.
Alan:
The moment I loved him most:
Every waking moment of my life, as well as every waking moment of his. But if we’re talking about specific instances:
Honestly, every single moment he was precious and affectionate with Lizardon. Literally within the first ten minutes of TSME we see him scratching Lizardon beneath his jaw and smiling, and then we get that flashback to him at the lab where he and Lizardon (a bby charmander at the time) cuddle and laugh together, and just … there are many other moments, of course, but less than ten minutes into TSME 1 I was confused about how anyone could possibly take issue with someone who was this goddamn adorable with his platonic soulmate. ♥
As much as Alan’s and Manon’s relationship is not nearly a favorite of mine anymore, I still laugh whenever they have their sibling spat in TSME 2, because even though Alan is legitimately stressed because Lysandre is there, the exchange is still funny.Alan: “[The Director and I] have something important to talk about. Go somewhere else.”Manon: “Hmph! Fine! Why do you have to treat me like such a little kid all the time—!” [promptly falls down a hill, shrieking, and gets stuck in some roots]Alan: “Every time … ! Hang on!” [goes to help her]Like, I can still hear his “itsumo, itsumo!” in my head, and it’s just hilarious. (As is Manon whining about being treated like a little kid (which she is) as she stomps off in a petulant huff, just like a pain in the ass little kid sister would …)
The way he immediately took charge and told everyone to take cover when Rayquaza attacked in TSME 2, reacting even faster than Steven Stone, current Champion of Hoenn, did.
When Lizardon was struck down by Primal Groudon in TSME 3, and Alan waited all of about .001 seconds before leaping out of the aircraft to go down after him, nearly dying himself in the process.
Each time he passionately expresses how much he loves, trusts, and believes in Lizardon.
When he and Lizardon had their Big Damn Heroes moment during their first meeting with Ash, with the rising dawn as a backdrop.
When he straight up won the Kalos League, just like he deserved to.
When he not only went to confront Lysandre over what was happening during the Flare crisis, but was also able (with some emotional support from Ash) to stand up to him, hell fucking yeah.
When he pulled off that badass back handspring in the Megalith when trying to save Hari-san.
When he confided in Ash at the lab when he was pretty clearly feeling suicidal, and then inwardly thanked Ash for “saving” him (“You’re always saving me …”) when he saw what Ash was getting him to agree to by asking him to battle again someday.
When he was nearly crying he was so happy when Sycamore offered him a place at the lab again.
And probably more that I’m forgetting, honestly. He’s my ultimate fave, I love him no matter what.
The moment I hated him most:
I’ve never in my life hated him and never would. Not only do enough people in this wretched fandom do that for me, but they often do it for reasons that make no sense whatsoever. That said, I do completely disregard everything after XYZ044, as well as the “decisions” that “he” made about what he’s going to do (that contradict his plan to stay at the lab and help out, at that), because it’s nonsensical and was only done because the writers wanted to push a “start from zero” theme. That’s not Alan’s fault and I don’t hold it against him, but god do I hate his ending.
The moment I understood him most:
Pretty much every moment, because I’m not sure there’s a character I identify with more, but in particular …
When he immediately jumped out of the aircraft in TSME 3 to go save Lizardon, and this isn’t even hypothetical. This is not “I would do the same,” but rather, “I have pretty much done the same,” because when I was fifteen Shiloh ran out into the street because she was still pretty young (six years old), and felt like playing tag. Well, unfortunately, being a dog, Shiloh didn’t exactly have awareness of the van that was speeding down the street. I, however, did, and it took all of .001 seconds for me to bolt out into the street after her, causing her to cross the rest of the way over, and causing me to nearly get hit by the van. (The driver had to slam on his brakes, squealing tires and everything.) I don’t regret it, and I’d make the same choice over again if I had to go back in time, and I’d make the same choice over again even if I had gotten hit by the van, but the point stands. I fully understand Alan’s feelings there, because I have pretty much done the same. Sure, the situation was different, but the point stands.
His tendency to keep his problems to himself and the severe difficulty he has with asking others for help, because yeah, I’m pretty much the same way (including the whole “keep this from those you care about so they’re not burdened / in danger” bit because, yeah, I’d make the same damn choice). I like to think I’ve gotten a bit better about this over the years, but it’s still immensely difficult for me to ask for help when I really need it, to the point where I will have to be in the eleventh hour before I will, and even then, it gives me anxiety attacks. My therapist says that this is a result of my C-PTSD, in that I never received help in my formative years, thus it’s hard for me to ask now, etc etc, you get the point. Alan, too, is very, very clearly used to having to take on and shoulder all burdens by himself, and handle everything by himself, and he has to be strong enough to do this, and if he’s too weak to do it then that’s just a sign he needs to train harder to be stronger, and so on and so forth. I get this. I get this so hard. And I understand, too, that he likely feels now more than ever that he has to be stronger to continue protecting this around him, and also to prevent himself from being used and abused by those like Lysandre again. Strength is not a bad thing, it’s not something to be looked down upon, and those of us who want to be stronger after what we went through … this isn’t something to “fix” or “stop pursuing,” though that said … learning how to ask for and receive help is a good thing that we should work on, too. Anyway, I really understand where Alan is coming from on this one. I’m the same way. I get it.
The last one will for sure no doubt get me some hate, so I’m just going to … leave it off, no matter how strongly I feel about it.
Prince Lotor:
The moment I loved him most:
I’m going to be real: I fell in love at first “Throk! You wish to challenge me?” If he had a different voice actor I might feel differently, but honestly, AJ Locascio makes every line Lotor speaks sound like music. He easily has the best voice on the show. He could read a phone book and make it sound like poetry.
But that said:
His entire speech in the arena. The Empire soldiers were not the only ones chanting, “Lotor, Lotor, Lotor!” let me tell you.
That truth bomb he dropped about how Voltron will not always be around to protect the planets they free, and are in fact just leaving so many civilians defenseless and at the mercy of the Empire. (Which, if Lotor is at the helm, they’ll probably be fine … but if Zarkon is on the throne, uh, no, those civilians are dying gruesome deaths for trying to leave the Empire. There’s no getting around it.)
“If Voltron disappears from our world, then we win. If they make it out with the comet, we’ll take it from them. It’s a win either way.” First of all, I looooooooove antagonists who can plan and execute perfect Xanatos Gambits, and second, he honestly had a light sing-song lilt on “it’s a win either way” djsfldsfldshfdsfds I LOVE HIM.
“I understand, Zethrid. You do what you must … and I’ll do what I must.” He then not only proceeds to free himself, but he leaves Zethrid where he knows that Acxa and Ezor will rescue her, and then just leaves them there. If he was so ~zomg evil~ as so many in this fandom like to claim, he would have spun around and atomized Zethrid as he so easily could have done, but he didn’t. He truly cared for his generals (the look of panic and regret on his face when striking down Narti showed that well enough), and he doesn’t want any harm to come to them. He certainly doesn’t want to hurt them himself. They were the closest he ever had to friends—probably the closest he ever had to family—and now he has lost them, but … he still cares. He’s no doubt feeling hurt and betrayed (and perhaps, on some level, angry), but he does still care.
Not only how he just casually listens to the radio transmissions in order to keep an eye (or, well, ear) on what the Empire is doing for his own safety, but also how he just FLEW INTO A SUN in order to avoid capture. If that’s not a move straight out of Keith Kogane’s playbook, I don’t know what is. And speaking of …
SAVING KEITH’S LIFE AT THE END OF 4x06, GODS BLESS.
The moment I hated him most:
I never have, actually. Not only did he actually make the show interesting by being a competent adversary for Team Voltron (something Zarkon could never claim in ten thousand years), but he’s a brilliantly multi-faceted character. I was on board with him from the moment his teaser trailer was announced. The only thing that will make me upset is if they have him hang out with Team Voltron in S5 instead of going over to the Blade of Marmora (and Keith) where he belongs. I love Lotor, but that will make me want to drop kick him down a flight of stairs.
The moment I understood him most:
Honestly, probably his resignation at being betrayed and therefore alone. He just … accepts it. He doesn’t lash out at Zethrid, Acxa, or Ezor, but he also doesn’t try to argue or reason with them. He just accepts it as a foregone conclusion that, well, they’re turning him over to the Empire now. That’s where they currently stand. And when he has left them, and he’s completely alone … you can see how resigned he is to this. He’s not only alone physically, but he’s alone emotionally, and you can see the toll. And that … all of that, it’s something I can get. I really felt him, there.
#character meme#severalbakuras#a blade of storm and fire#my valiant dragon son#and i don't have a special tag for Lotor#hmmm i should fix that at some point
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hey there! i was just wondering what you thought were the quintessential alllurance eps of vld (minus s8 bc I'm too distressed over that).
if you want an exhaustive list, i recommend skimming through my allurance ship manifesto and picking the episodes that have at least one scene of screencaps.
just from skimming that myself:
1x01 (meet cute)
2x02 (”mrs. blue lion”)
2x03 (lance staying behind with allura)
2x06 (lance saying he’d cross the universe for allura and being jealous of her running off with keith)
2x07 (allura wants something sparkly!)
lance’s vlog (like half of it is devoted to allura lol)
3x02 (allura telling lance to accept red)
3x03 (allura trying to flirt with the blue lion, lance supporting her)
3x06 (lance being in awe of allura’s whip, allura picking him up by the collar)
4x06 (lance being the first to reach allura when she’s zapped, lance inspiring allura with his speech, allura thanking him)
5x01 (lance being the one to grab allura for the meeting, lance standing closest to lot/or before he even mentions marrying allura)
5x03 (allura walking in on lance training with his sword and reassuring him, lance reassuring her in turn)
5x06 (lance freaking the fuck out because he’s worried about allura on oriande..........hah...................)
6x01 (DO I EVEN NEED TO EXPLAIN WHY?)
6x02 (lance being sad about lot/ura, allura being conflict about lance’s indirect confession)
6x03 (dnd episode! lance saying they have fun together and allura agreeing)
6x06 (lance consoling allura about loto/r’s betrayal, the huuuuug)
6x07 (for the ending scene when lance is crying and allura feels it’s necessary to smile at lance before reviving shiro)
7x10 (veronica teasing lance about allura being pretty, allura blushing at lance and telling him to come back safe! lance blushing back and denying the significance of this when veronica teases him! glorious!)
7x13 (lance looking over at allura after they’ve won, allura looking back at him and smiling softly, allura having that card that lance likely made for her in her hospital room)
i bolded the episodes that i’d consider quintessential.
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VLD8x09 – “Knights of Light Part 1”
8x09 – “Knights of Light Part 1”
The first time I watched this episode, I spent most of the episode being nothing but confused. This time, there is still a lot that confuses me, but I’m able to focus in on what does so. This episode retcons what has previously been depicted as the Lions’ consciousness. Now, the void that Shiro spent seasons three through six in is no longer the Black Lion’s consciousness. It’s just a miscellaneous realm of connectivity between everyone in the universe’s minds. In the style of how what was previously described as the Black Lion’s consciousness was animated, now similar appearing locations exist inside Honerva’s mind. The way universal consciousness is depicted in this episode is so uncontrolled that the episode has the Paladins arrive at Honerva’s mind twice during their attempt to get to her, or if the first mind they get to wasn’t Honerva’s then it was someone that isn’t identified. They get pulled into Honerva’s mind, but then the things characters say indicate that they’re not in Honerva’s mind. Basically, this episode’s production couldn’t keep clear about its locations. Maybe that’s just a problem with writing disembodied, nebulousness like this: you lose sense of the logistics of the action.
I’m also super annoyed that this episode now adds a second level of blamelessness to Honerva and Zarkon. The show has long been pushing the idea that neither of them are to blame for their actions because they were externally influenced by being poisoned by quintessence. But now, this episode says that they weren’t to blame because they were possessed by rift entities. I am not okay with a story telling me that it’s not the fault of abusive, torturous, genocidal dictators that they abuse, torture, and commit genocide.
The episode starts with Allura having another dream, floating in darkness. There’s a voice calling her name, I think it’s Honerva? Allura wakes up, Coran and Lance by her bed in the medical bay. Coran asks her about the entity, and Allura says, “I did what needed to be done. […] This entity, it is connected to Honerva in some way. I believe we can use it.” Coran goes patriarchal, saying, “I swore to your father I would look after you, but I fear I may have let him down.” Because how dare a woman make her own decisions.
Coran says, “This is the path of darkness.” We get lots of supposedly ominous statements like this in this part of the story, but none of it really amounts to anything. It’s certainly not foreshadowing, nor is it used as set-up to be undermined. It’s not as if the story is having it seem like the rift entity is dangerous only to reveal, as I suggested last commentary as having been a potential better story, that the entity isn’t dangerous, just upset at being imprisoned and hurt by Honerva. Nothing like that happens in this story. It’s just the entity is miscellaneously dangerous, and then the danger to Allura never happens.
I still think the way gravity works on the Atlas is odd. Shiro floats through a hallway up to a door, and once at the door, he steps down onto the floor. There’s no gravity in the center of the hallway, but there’s gravity along the sides of the hallway. It comes off to me as nonsense. Shiro opens the door and inside are the Paladins and Coran. “You wanted to see me?” Shiro asks. This again emphasizes how Shiro is not part of the team. The rest of them had this big conversation without including him in it until now.
Keith says, “We think we might have a way to find Honerva.” Allura tells Shiro, “The entity has bonded me to Honerva. The link is there whether we use it or not.” I guess this is just more miscellaneous, unexplained space magic. The entity isn’t really defined in this show. We’ve seen the entities in the past be aggressive, we’ve seen it merge with others of its kind to fight. That was presented as being a threat (3x07 “The Legend Begins). Now, we’ve seen it having been inside Tova, but precisely what it did in him wasn’t explained. I guess maybe the show is saying the entity is just there to let Honerva control and kill the Colony Alteans? That doesn’t make the entity really seem inherently threatening in and of itself though. That’s just using the entity as a mechanism to say this is how Honerva can control people. That’s Honerva, not the entity, being threatening.
Allura says (and Lance looks super angry while she speaks), “I believe if the Paladins connect using the shared consciousness of Voltron, we may be able to travel through the void and into Honerva’s mind.”
I have a huge problem with this. This is feels like a massive retcon to what “the void” has been shown as in the past. This is connected back to 5x03 “Postmortem,” in which all five Paladins used their bayards in Voltron. In that episode, Voltron is being attacked by a plant-virus and Pidge says, “Listen, this virus is affecting Voltron on a submolecular level. To drive it out, we have to tap into the quantum energy that binds us all to Voltron.” Allura then responds, “The bayards, they amplify each Paladin’s life force. They might provide enough power to drive out the virus.” The five of them put their bayards in their respective Lions’ bayard slots, and then they all appear within “the void.” The void is in “Postmortem” and in every instance that has dealt with Shiro and the Black Lion’s bond, like 2x07 “Space Mall” and 6x06 “All Good Things,” been about the Paladins and Voltron. The void has not been some otherworldly location separate from the Lions/Voltron. There is absolutely no reason whatsoever for the void to now be connected to Honerva. Honerva is not a Paladin. She has never been a Paladin. The psychic space of the Lions/Voltron should have absolutely nothing to do with her.
I can totally understand why people would see this episode and, on this alone, think that this is evidence of a massive change in the season’s plot really late into the season’s production. I can see how there’s a suggestion here of a revised story where originally the Paladins went into the psychic space of Voltron having something to do with Shiro and his having been stored by the Black Lion in her psychic space. If the void is now just some nebulous otherworld that does not belong to the Lions, then it completely erases the previously stated fact that the Black Lion kept Shiro in its consciousness. But the show’s use of the void in the past has been fairly explicit that that is what was happening. So, this episode contradicts severely with past episodes.
That’s not to say that the executive producers and writers of this show would have any problem with writing this story to contradict previously written story. They don’t seem to have any real desire to maintain continuity and consistency in the writing for this show. Since most of the plot of this series seems like the EPs and writers were mostly just winging it as they went along, I don’t think they cared that this violates what’s been established in the story. Sometimes, I honestly don’t think that Joaquim Dos Santos and Lauren Montgomery were even interested in telling a story. I think they just wanted to do story-less animation. So many times, this show feels like they were trying to do nothing more than to make some Voltron: Defender of the Universe AU fanart. They certainly did not construct a coherent, cohesive narrative. Maybe that’s part of what angers me so much about VLD. I’m a writer. I love storytelling. I love animation, but I come to animation as being a medium through which a story can be told. JDS and LM saw this project as animation first and foremost, and storytelling was only secondary, at best. The story of this show was only something they were forced to do in order to be allowed to make animation. I don’t think they really cared about telling a story.
Back to this episode. Pidge says, “That could in theory give us access to her physical location as well as key information on how to defeat her.” I’m still stuck on how they would see entering Voltron’s psychic space would have anything to do with Honerva. This is just feels forced.
Keith says, “Honerva is capable of creating galactic komars, wormholes, Robeasts,” I know this show doesn’t do logic, but Honerva’s “galactic komar” was dependent on the Robeasts. How many Robeasts did she create from the statues at Oriande? I know, the show doesn’t show us so that it can have an endless supply for whenever the writers want to pull a new one out of the bag and not have to keep track of the logistics of them all. All of the Robeasts used in 8x06 “Genesis” should be out of the story. Oriande and the white hole went boom, so none of them there should have survived (though since Merla pops up again, I guess they did). The ones used as part of this “galactic komar” though have been found; that’s where the four of the six Colony Alteans now onboard the Atlas came from. So, did the Atlas just leave those Robeasts laying on those respective planets? Are they just sitting there waiting for Honerva to reclaim them? Otherwise, how is the “galactic komar” still a threat since it was built out of tech (the mechas and the Olkari cubes) that are destroyed or no longer functioning?
Keith continues, “And now, Lotor and his mech are out there somewhere.” Again, this show presents this story as if Lotor is actually alive, but we’ll soon be shown that he’s a melted corpse. It does make the season feel like it was re-edited. If it wasn’t re-edited, then this is absolutely the creative team for this show repetitiously manipulating the audience. If they hadn’t already proven themselves to be more than willing to engage in audience manipulation, especially when it comes to Lotor’s part in the show’s story, then I might be more willing to give more weight to the possibility that this was re-edited. I can see JDS, LM, and the writers in a meeting saying to write the season’s story to make it look like Lotor is alive only to surprise twist! he’s been dead the whole time. They wouldn’t care about the inconsistency that writing this season that way would have because their goal would be to create the surprise twist! that they seem to think is how you create a story. And it would make sense that they would think that that is how you create a story if creating that story was always secondary, at best, to their goals with this project.
Keith says, “We don’t have any other leads. It might take lifetimes for another opportunity like this to come around.” Are you kidding me? Keith thinks that Honerva is going to sit out and do nothing for “lifetimes?” Remember, they’re saying they need to do this in order to find Honerva, that’s the opportunity of a lifetime: a chance to find her. But if Honerva’s not done doing what she plans to do, then she’ll show up again, thus they will have found her by her just continuing whatever it is she’s doing. This line of dialog is just not written well.
Shiro speaks. “I spent a lot of time in the infinite void.” Yes, you did, and that void was inside the Black Lion, not some otherworld that is connected to Honerva. “And if you face Honerva in the void—” They shouldn’t be able to because how is Honerva able to be in the Lions’/Voltron’s psychic space?
Lance says, “We’re messing with powers we don’t fully understand.” Unfortunately, the writers of this show don’t fully understand those powers either because they didn’t bother to define those powers.
Coran says, “It’s been a long time since it was only the seven of us in a room together.” That’s because the writers didn’t bother to continue to write you guys as the main characters.
The Paladins get in their Lions. Allura has a flash of Honerva’s face and screams. She then has a vision of Honerva and Merla floating in a hallway. It makes me think of how the Shiro-clone had visions of Honerva going to Oriande in 6x01 “Omega Shield.” Unlike with Allura, it couldn’t be that the clone had a rift entity in him. I’m still wondering why exactly the clone was able to see Honerva in that episode. The initial blast of Allura seeing an outline of Honerva’s face made it seem like Honerva was directly trying to access Allura, but then the vision of Honerva floating down a hallway would suggest Honerva was just doing her thing and Allura was eavesdropping. Even within just a couple of seconds, this show seems to contradict itself.
The show then cuts to a total tonal dissonance by having Veronica and Iverson discussing Shiro’s win at arm-wrestling while having a “robot arm.” I really like (the barely included) Curtis in the background turned in his seat and listening to this conversation while having an adorkable smile.
So, Voltron forms, the Paladins do their joint bayard use. The animation team was clearly lazy and just reused a shot from the animation in 5x03 “Postmortem.” You can tell that it’s reused animation because Keith is currently the Black Paladin. Keith, though he has the black bayard, wears red armor. In the animation of the bayards being used here in “Knights of Light Part 1,” the user of the black bayard has black armor, just like he did in “Postmortem.” So, in this particular shot here in “Knights of Light Part 1,” that’s Shiro’s arm, not Keith’s.
Everything glows and then turns dark. Then the Paladins enter the void. Allura declares that they “must travel through that light.” Generic, but okay. She says, “The entity draws me toward it.” That implies that either the entity has some agency or that for some reason the entity is unwillingly attracted toward Honerva. (I really hate that to continue to discuss this episode, I have to accept the retcon that the Lions’/Voltron’s psychic space is not the Lions’ consciousness but some otherworld that Honerva is connected to.)
The Paladins use their suits’ jetpacks to move toward the light. I know it’s a minor matter, but they’re not physically in this location right now; they’re sitting in their Lions. So, why write them to look like they’re using their jetpacks to move through space? They get to the light, which fills the screen, and then dissipates into normal looking space. Lance says, “What is this place? It’s like I can hear what the universe is thinking.” What? This show is going to write the universe itself to be sentient? I imagine that this line really is nothing but the writers thinking they’re being profound when really it’s just them being nonsensical.
Pidge invokes the Olkari having said everything is made of the same energy. Hunk replies, “So, thoughts are linked across some kind of, what, cosmic connection?” I’m so uninterested in this. The psychic space used to seem special, that it was a manifestation of the Lions’ consciousness. Now, the void is just some generic overmind of the universe. The implication of this is that the Black Lion didn’t save Shiro’s spirit at all. If the void is not some psychic space of the Lions’ consciousness but instead is just a universal overmind, then Shiro’s spirit wasn’t being stored in the Black Lion. Shiro’s spirit was just where spirits are.
Allura has another flash headache, and then everyone else does too. They see Honerva and Merla somewhere. It looks like Oriande with how the mechas are standing in the background. Cut to Voltron’s eyes glowing.
Back in the overmind. Allura explains that “that was Honerva. The entity inside of me is connected to her.” This dialog is getting repetitive. Allura says that they now have a psychic link with Honerva. “The closer we are to her, the stronger that link.” But of course, they’re not physically closer to her, so I guess this “closer” is referencing their being psychically closer to her here in the overmind? In which case, this line of dialog becomes a tautology. Lance worries that Honerva will use this link the Paladins now have with Honerva’s mind to find them. Then they will have achieved their goal; remember, they’re doing this to find where Honerva is. Also, Honerva has enough space magic already, I doubt she needs this link to find them.
It feels really weird for Keith to say, “This isn’t just on you now, Princess.” They haven’t interacted with Allura in recognition of her as a princess in a long time. It feels strange hearing him do so now. It actually sounds kind of condescending when he says it. Keith tells them all to miscellaneously focus on Honerva’s energy. They glow. The Lions’ eyes glow. Each Paladin is shown associated to their Lions. And then the Lions are flying through space.
What is happening here? I guess the Lions aren’t actually flying anywhere, that this is somehow now them in the overmind going with the Paladins through the overmind to Honerva’s mind? But then, they fly into the distance and there’s a flash of light and the Lions are back together in Voltron. So, is this actual Voltron or some Voltron in the overmind?
This is a huge part of why I hate this episode: It so too damn confusing. I can imagine the creative team had certain specific ideas in mind when they were doing this, but they failed to tell this story clearly, and I don’t know what they were trying to tell.
Voltron looks like it’s travelling through space. There’s even planets and moons. Because Voltron actually travels through space, there’s nothing visually that allows for this to contrast with actual space if this is supposed to be Voltron traveling through the overmind.
Hunk says, “I can feel something, like an energy inside me.” And Allura says, “It’s the entity.” The entity is now in Hunk? In all the Paladins? Keith says, “It’s like a dark realization washing over.” This line does not mean anything. It’s just miscellaneous spew that the writer thinks sounds profound and ominous. It doesn’t though. Pidge says, “It’s like we’re begin pulled by a tether connected to our souls.” Again, this is nowhere near as profound as the writer thinks it is. It also places the locus of action on the entity, pulling them, rather than on the Paladins actively traversing through the overmind. It’s sort of depriving the Paladins of agency. It also doesn’t explain why the entity is being drawn toward Honerva.
They come upon what looks like a black hole. Everything goes dark, then every looks like neurons, which I assume is supposed to be Honerva’s brain. Then Voltron looks like it comes out of a light, like it’s left the neurons behind. It’s so confusing. I’m really trying to understand what this animation is actually depicting, but I don’t really know.
Voltron flies through space some more, and then everything turns dark again. And then Voltron is flying through that darkness with little bits of quintessence? floating off of it. Then Voltron separates into little colored dots. From the wide shot, you can’t tell if they’re the Lions or the Paladins. They float through blackness with more quintessence-bits floating from a glowing event horizon. The camera reorients, and the glowing Paladins land on the black surface.
I don’t know why Voltron was involved in this traversing of the overmind. What did Voltron actually do for the Paladins in this process? And why is Voltron now not part of the process? Why did it poof into just being the Paladins in the overmind again? Also, the animation already had Voltron enter what looked like a black hole, which I assumed was Honerva’s mind, but then they left it, floated through space some more, and now have arrived at what looks like another black hole. So, why was there a first black hole if that wasn’t Honerva’s mind? Whose mind did that first black hole belong to?
They stand on a surface, and Allura says that Honerva’s mind is “on the other side of this wall.” There are streaks of black with streaks of red or orange for eyes moving under the wall. Allura says, “It feels like that these are the souls that Honerva has defeated and corrupted.” Why has the show not shown us that Honerva could corrupt souls before now? (Or is corrupting a soul what she did to the clone to be able to control him? That would make it even more offensive that the Paladins described the clone as evil.) Honerva corrupting souls just comes out of nowhere. There is nothing in the show prior to this that sets-up this reveal. And, if Honerva can explicitly corrupt someone else’s soul, then how did the writers think it’s acceptable for them to expect the audience by the end of the series to view Honerva as absolved of her horrible behavior?
The show here says Honerva can corrupt souls, it has been saying for seasons now that Honerva was corrupted by quintessence poisoning, and in this episode says that Honerva was corrupted by a rift entity. It’s all a mess that does not locate motivation for character action within the character.
Spectral hands come out of the floor-wall and grab Allura first and then all the Paladins. There are a lot of hands, so there are a lot of souls that Honerva has corrupted. The Paladins, with the exception of Keith, are pulled down into the floor-wall, into Honerva’s mind. Why wasn’t Keith pulled in?
First Pidge opens her eyes and the way the place she is looks, she’s in a greenish version of what had been depicted as the Black Lion’s consciousness in 6x06 “All Good Things” when Keith spoke to Shiro’s spirit there. But Allura just said that “on the other side of this wall” was Honerva’s mind. But the visuals of this would suggest that this is the Green Lion’s consciousness. So, how is the Green Lion’s consciousness inside Honerva’s mind?
A green-outlined shadowy person with a polearm weapon appears and attacks Pidge. Cut to a yellowy-orangey area where Hunk is being attacked by a similar figure with a staff. Lance in a red area fighting one with a sword. Allura in blue and fighting one with a bow. Keith meanwhile is still on the surface of Honerva’s mind.
Pidge says, “I can’t even feel my Lion.” I still don’t understand why the animators chose to have the environments the Paladins are fighting in resemble what “All Good Things” presented as the Black Lion’s consciousness if here the Paladins are, as Pidge says, disconnected from their Lions. I don’t know if the executive producers and animators in making this episode either didn’t remember or recognize the significance of this background from when it was used in “All Good Things,” but that’s hard for me to accept as a possibility. Or if they instead thought that assigning meaning to animation like they did for this background style from “All Good Things” just didn’t matter and that they could just port over the background style and ignore the previous meaning.
In Shiro and Keith’s conversation in “All Good Things, Shiro said, “somehow the Black Lion retained my essence,” to which Keith asked Shiro, “Is that where we are, in the Black Lion’s consciousness?” So, this background style has most definitively been established as being that of the Lions’ consciousness. But now, Pidge says she “can’t even feel [her] Lion.” I just don’t know what to make of this episode. It seems so disconnected from what has come before. No wonder people think this is the result of shattering some original story and reconstituting the pieces into this confusing mess.
Allura’s attacker shoots an arrow at her. She holds out her hand, shadowy wisps float off her hand, and the arrow stops. Her eyes turn black. She screams an inhuman scream. I guess we’re supposed to think this is the rift entity acting through her?
But then glowing, spectral versions of the Lions show up in each of the four’s combat area. So, they’re supposed to be inside Honerva’s mind, though it looks like the visual style previously used to depict a Lion’s consciousness, Keith can’t get inside Honerva’s mind with the other Paladins, but the Lions can enter into Honerva’s mind to join their Paladins? The Lions roar, and the dark wisps are blown by the wind of the roar off of Allura’s eyes. The shadowy figures the Paladins have been fighting have their shadow blown off of them revealing them to be the past Paladins.
So, we’re supposed to understand that Honerva somehow corrupted the souls of the Paladins. How did she corrupt Alfor’s soul? When did she corrupt Alfor’s soul? We saw in “The Legend Begins” that Alfor was killed by Zarkon on a bridge with no one else around them.
Allura’s eyes go dark again and she screams her inhuman scream and attacks Blaytz. The Blue Lion roars again and everything goes white. Then we see Alfor giving the other old Paladins their armor and their bayards. This scene depicts Zarkon pre-quintessence poisoning, and he says, “With this much power, we will be unstoppable.” So, his being a dictatorial, genocidal conqueror was always a part of who he was. He didn’t become bad because of quintessence poisoning. So, the show using the poisoning to excuse his behavior is just offensive. This flashback scene of the old Paladins unintentionally emphasizes Zarkon’s lack of presence in this fight so far, emphasizes Keith’s exclusion from the fight.
Allura stops short of stabbing Blaytz. “It’s really you,” she says. Pidge says, “Your soul, Honerva must have—” and Hunk continues, “—trapped you here somehow.” Of course, that makes me ask, how did Honerva do this? Especially with Alfor? We’ve seen his death. When did Honerva trap the Paladins’ souls inside her own mind? And why has that never been part of the story until now? Honerva has been active in this show’s plot for the whole series. Why is it only now that her having done this is relevant? This has never been a part of anything in the story until now. It clearly was not planned as part of the overall story arc. This really is just coming out of nowhere. And that, beyond this part of the story being super confusing, is why I don’t like it. The idea that the current Paladins would have to fight the old Paladins is a really interesting premise, but there’s been no set-up to lead to this fight. There’s nothing to this that makes it feel the inevitable outcome of the events prior to now.
Like too much in this show’s story, this is a set piece. It seems conceptualized wholly independently of the story and then the story is what was written to try to force connection between set pieces. It’s why the reveal of the clone and resulting battle between Keith and Shiro had a certain grandeur to it, but there was no reason ever given in the show for why Haggar had hundreds of clones of Shiro made. That fight was a set piece that was forced into the story rather than grown out of the story. Similarly, this fight with the old Paladins doesn’t come out of the story, it’s wedged into it, the story is forced to accommodate it, and that’s why it is so disconnected to what has come before. And in being so disconnected, the moment is deprived of the emotion it could and should have.
The Lions roar once again, the souls of the old Paladins and the backgrounds fracture and light pours out of it all and everything goes to white. All of the development in this conflict comes from the Lions, so if the Lions could clean the Paladins’ souls of corruption, they why have they been sitting there in this fight waiting instead of just doing so from the moment they came into this space?
Cut to a flashback with Alfor, Gyrgan, Trigel, Blaytz, and Coran discuss how Zarkon is going to come for them. Trigel wants to fight Zarkon, but Alfor doesn’t want to risk Zarkon getting the Lions. Alfor says they’ll use the other Lions to seal the Black Lion and then send the other four to where they were until they were found at the beginning of the series. Alfor tells Coran to use the Castle of Lions to take Allura and the Black Lion away. But then, Gyrgan says, “Then it is decided: We go into battle together one last time.” Of course, that doesn’t match Alfor’s having rejected fighting when Trigel suggested it first.
Cleaned of having been corrupted by Honerva, Trigel asks, “Where am I?” Hunk answers Gyrgan, “You’re in the void, just outside of Honerva’s mind.”
One, the backgrounds still look like the Black Lion’s consciousness, but Hunk doesn’t say they’re in their respective Lions’ consciousness, he says they’re “in the void.” But then he says that they’re “just outside of Honerva’s mind.” Keith is, the rest of them are not. The rest of them were dragged under the barrier into Honerva’s mind. This show really cannot keep this straight. So, which is it? They were pulled into Honerva’s mind, but it’s outside her mind. They’re in the void, but it looks like the Lions’ consciousnesses.
Trigel says she’s glad that “someone so connected to the world around her is piloting the Green Lion.” I still don’t think this show has actually shown Pidge to be connected to nature. “My race believes observation to be the most revered attribute.” As I’ve said before in my commentaries, I really don’t like when science fiction writes aliens to be monocultures. Trigel’s race doesn’t believe anything because it was made up of a bunch of different people, who like humanity, all have a bunch of different thoughts and opinions and beliefs, or at least her race should be like that if it was written realistically. Sorry, that’s just a peeve of mine.
Blaytz tells Allura, “People often overlook me because I was,” there’s a very slight hesitation in his voice, “different.” I very much imagine that this is supposed to be a reference to Blaytz being gay. Unfortunately, this phrasing sounds to me like how a straight person would write a gay person to speak. Using the word “different” as a stand-in functions like someone who doesn’t want to get personal, which you have to do to write dialog well. It’s seems clear to me that the word “different” was chosen to avoid actually, openly talking about Blaytz’s being gay. It makes the character’s experience generic, which causes it to lose emotion and meaning. I can imagine the writer defending this dialog by saying writing it this way gives it universality, but that’s a thought that comes out of unexamined privilege. By excluding the specifics in favor of claimed universality, you deny the cause and content of the discrimination and exclusion you claim to be rejecting, and so cease to be actually rejecting anything.
Blaytz then continues talking about the Blue Lion picking him. “But the Blue Lion recognized something in me, something others couldn’t see. It saw the greatness within that even I did not.” Imagine this dialog but instead of Blaytz talking to Allura, he was talking to Lance. It would be totally fitting in theme as another step in Lance’s struggle to recognize something great within himself that even he could not see. Lance had, until it was abandoned by the writers, serious issues with self-confidence and believing himself to have value as part of the team. Even this episode hints at that abandoned element of Lance’s character back at the beginning during the meeting with Shiro when Lance expresses pleasure that calling him “the sharpshooter” is now something the team does fondly. It would have made so much more sense for Blaytz to have said this to Lance. But instead, he says, “You, Allura, have greatness within you as well.” This isn’t something she needs him to tell her since she’s hasn’t wrestled with feeling fundamentally worthless, especially once she learned Altean alchemy at Oriande. She has doubted her ability to succeed, but not her inherent worth. “You’re so much like your father, and yet so different.” This line is so cliché and so meaningless.
Lance, with his long history of insecurity, gets nothing from Alfor that supports him as a person. Instead, the show returns to having patriarchy as the governing influence of Lance’s relationship with Allura. “Through the Lion’s bond, I could feel your love for my daughter,” Alfor says. “I could feel yours as well,” Lance says. Why is this show juxtaposing the love of a father for his daughter to the love a guy feels for his girlfriend? It’s just gross. It makes Lauren Montgomery’s claims that feminism has any influence whatsoever in this show seem absolutely absurd. But then, LM thought killing Allura at the end of the series was feminist. I still cannot get over how she considered having Allura reincarnated as an infant, literally infantilizing Allura, and have her then raised by Lance. It’s so creepy.
Alfor tells Lance, “We face many quests throughout the cosmos, but the most amazing journey is that of life. And the biggest question you face is who to go on that journey with. I’m glad my daughter chose you.” So, Lance receives nothing, no personal support from his Paladin-parallel. The others tell their respective Paladins something supportive of them, but all Lance gets is Alfor’s patriarchal approval of Lance as a suitor for Allura. This is such an absolute disservice to Lance’s character.
Keith remains on the surface of Honerva’s mind, unable to get through. Then suddenly the Black Lion is there. Why did it take so long for Black to show up for Keith when the other Lions had long showed up for their Paladins? Keith gets no special moment of affirmation with a previous Paladin. It feels absolutely like he was excluded, but for no reason other than they wanted to save a conflict with Zarkon until later. But if Zarkon was corrupted the same as the other old Paladins, why wouldn’t he have attacked Keith the same as the other old Paladins attacked their current counterparts? Almost as soon as the Black Lion shows up here with Keith on the outside of Honerva’s mind, the other Lions show up here too. The other Paladins, both old and new, show up here on the floor-wall to Honerva’s mind.
Allura runs to and hugs her father. Alfor says, “It is fitting that I would find what is brightest to me in the darkest place.” This feels a bit cliché. Allura says, “All that I have done, I have done to make you proud.” Trust me, I know what it feels like to want to make a parent proud, but this is so limiting. This is Allura defining herself by her father’s acceptance rather than defining herself by her own self. It’s very patriarchal to write a young female character to define herself by her father. I just don’t like it.
There’s a headache flash, and they see Honerva looking at a mecha, one that matches the one Allura saw Lotor piloting in her vision last episode when Lotor said, “Follow me!”
Alfor says to Allura, “You hold a dark entity within you! Don’t you know how dangerous that is!” Thank you so much for your patriarchal judgement, Alfor. Allura is so stupid that she couldn’t possibly know about something being dangerous unless you chastise her for it. Also, ignore the fact that this supposed dangerousness never manifests in the story.
Alfor says, “That’s what led to Honerva and Zarkon’s end!” So, not only were they poisoned by quintessence when they went into the quintessence field in “The Legend Begins,” now the show is saying that Honerva and Zarkon became who they are because they were possessed by a rift entity? The show is really doubling down on absolving Honerva and Zarkon for being abusive, murderous, genocidal dictators for 10,000 years. Not only is it supposed to be not their fault because they were poisoned, now it’s also not their fault because they were possessed. I do not find the-devil-made-me-do-it stories even remotely interesting. This is just the creative team of this show being too cowardly to actually have their villains be villains. They don’t mind retaining their proclamation that Lotor was evil all along because declaring him to be evil was their big, desired plot twist. But they were too scared to commit to having Haggar and Zarkon as villains. For so long, both characters were written as just generic, maniacal villains. Then, I think the creative team thought they were making Zarkon and Honerva be more complex villains by saying they did the horrible things they did because of an external force (quintessence). Now, the show is just creating another way with which they can absolve the characters of the horrible things they did. But it’s not like Honerva and Zarkon just said hurtful things. They abused their son. They enslaved people. They tortured people. They murdered people. They committed genocide, murdering the population of whole planets. This is not something to forgive them for. And it’s offensive that this show is telling us to do so.
Also, if Honerva is supposed to be absolved for her actions because she was being controlled by a rift entity, how is it that the show simultaneously has Honerva affecting others through the rift entity? She was trying to kill Tova last episode through the rift entity in him. So, is the rift entity controlling Honerva, or is she controlling rift entities?
Allura says, “I am not going to be afraid to use the power I have.” She says, “We need to continue,” and someone, Lance, I think, says, “But how do we get past the wall?” Well, the spirits of the old Paladins dragged everyone but Keith beneath the wall earlier, so, try that.
Allura says, “It’s like I can feel her thoughts. The way through is with the darkness.” I don’t know how these two sentences are supposedly connected. Is this the extent of what the entity is doing for Allura, just getting her inside Honerva’s mind?
Alfor says, “Honerva went mad—” it’s annoying that the show equates mental illness with dangerousness in this line of dialog “—obsessed with darkness and power.” She was obsessed with quintessence. So, is the show now calling quintessence “darkness?” I thought quintessence was supposed to be life energy.
Allura does a touch-hand-glow and the surface beneath them glows. A light line streaks through the surface and the geometrics like that which appear around wormholes and like the ones Honerva created on Oriande when she retrieved Sincline appears beneath them all. Everything starts glowing white and they disappear from the surface.
This episode is a mess. It’s ambitious, but it’s so unwieldly. It significantly contradicts previous parts of the show, and that really, really bothers me. I don’t like how it takes what felt special (the idea that the Lions had a psychic space created by their consciousness, and that that is where the Black Lion kept Shiro’s spirit after he died) and now just makes it all be some generic universal overmind.
And I really hate that this show is now saying Honerva and Zarkon’s horrible behavior is the fault of being possessed by rift entities. Before it was the result of being poised by quintessence. Did the show forget that they had already assigned one thing to blame for their behavior other than themselves? And that is the ultimate thing that angers me about this. Both quintessence poisoning and rift entity possession are cheats. They reveal a fear of letting villains be villains. They refuse to seriously deal with the reality that these characters are horrible people. By assigning blame to an external source, now two external sources, the show prevents the villains from having to confront their behavior, and the protagonists lose the ability to condemn the behavior as the narrative manifestation of their final confrontation with the villains. The same way that these episodes keep telling us the rift entities are a threat without ever really resolving that, the series, by locating the blame for the villains actions in external sources, never resolves the villains’ actions.
#voltron legendary defender#voltron#vld#voltron criticism#vld criticism#voltron critical#vld critical#vld season 8#vld 8x09#commentary
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pidge at the alien bathroom is the public restroom fiasco that every gender queer person faces aka pidge is gender queer
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VLD7x04 – “The Feud!”
7x04 – “The Feud!”
Can anyone tell me what the point of this episode is? I truly do not understand why this episode exists. Not only was this episode written, it was written by the (until part way through this season) Story Editor for this show Tim Hedrick. Even with episodes I think are a waste of time like 4x04 “The Voltron Show!” or 8x07 “Day Forty-Seven” or 8x08 “Clear Day,” I still at least recognize something of the writer’s intention, but I have no idea what the point of “The Feud!” is. There are episodes of this series that I really don’t like, but I haven’t dreaded rewatching any of them the way I dreaded rewatching this one. I don’t think there’s an episode of this show that I hate more than this one.
There is only one interpretation that I can think of for this episode, and it makes Tim Hedrick look extremely petty and unprofessional (see the end of this commentary).
The episode, with the juxtaposition of the visual design and the episode title, is clearly a reference to old gameshows like Family Feud. Voltron Legendary Defender’s target audience was young kids, and it’s hard for me to imagine anyone that young being familiar with old gameshows, so I have no idea how anyone thought this gameshow pastiche would be appealing to them.
I guess this episode is supposed to be funny. Nothing about this episode makes me laugh.
The Paladins are a team on a gameshow. Shiro continues to not be part of the team. Keith, Pidge, Lance, Hunk, and Allura are all being forced to participate. They are disoriented and have no idea where they are or why they’re here. Pidge says, “The last thing I remember, we were all flying in our Lions.” So, Hunk’s declaration near the end of last episode that the Lions were “in worse shape than ever,” meant absolutely nothing. There is no resolution of the Lions being without power. The show just ignores what it had set up.
Is Bob supposed to be funny? I have never understood why shows – VLD is not alone in this – do episodes with inscrutable characters like Bob. Some faux-mysterious other-being that causes things to happen, functions in some ways like a chaos-agent, but the narrative never gives any real explanation to why the character does what they do. It is fundamentally bad writing to ever have a character whose motivation is nonexistent.
Bob tells the Paladins that they have to win this game or be “trapped here in our studio for the rest of eternity.” Whatever threat that is supposed to have is instantly nonexistent. Of course, the Paladins are getting out of this since there’s more show to go. By using faux-threat like this, by using something so over-the-top severe, the episode causes the audience to instantly disengage with the plot. A story having too much threat can actually turn into having no threat.
Bob locks the Paladins’ feet to the floor, the camera and sound of his voice go over-the-top menacing, and he says, “You will play my game as long as I want you to.” Because everything Bob says is meaningless, the faux-threat just feels absurd.
The laugh track I guess is just part of the old gameshow pastiche that they used for this episode. Laugh tracks have always seemed like lies to me. I don’t like an episode telling me, laugh here. And since this episode is not funny, every time I hear the laugh track, I wonder, did the people who worked on this episode actually think this was funny?
Bob magically infantilizes Keith by putting a pacifier in his mouth while Keith has to draw something for the other Paladins to guess. I guess it’s supposed to be funny that the other Paladins have trouble guessing what Keith’s drawing, but it’s not funny. Allura correctly guesses Arusian for the first drawing, after Lance thinks it’s a chicken and Pidge yells at him. For the second drawing, it’s clearly a sword, and Lance guesses “chopsticks,” which when Pidge yells at him again, he modifies to “space chopsticks.” Pidge gets the correct Blade of Marmora guess. Third guess goes to Hunk who, after cycling through all of the colors, answers Red Lion. The last drawing is of Haggar, which Lance calls “pepperoni, an alligator, a cave, windy cave, […] a thermos,” and Allura slams the platform/desk they’re standing at and yells, “Lance, will you stop talking!”
I hate that this episode has everyone treat Lance like this.
They fail to get the last one in time. And then the “other team” is introduced. Zarkon, Haggar, Lotor, and an “insignificant underling” Morvok. I don’t have any idea what the purpose of bringing them into this is. They don’t behave like the characters actually behave in the show. They’re not even caricatures of the characters used as some form of self-referential meta-analysis.
The instant Zarkon is told to guess Keith’s last drawing, of course he’s going to get it right, and he even clearly knows he knows the answer, but it feels like forever for him to just get on with it and say the answer. I guess it’s supposed to be funny, but it’s not.
Lotor rants about “spending centuries perfecting my exquisite life-like renderings, not that you cared,” Haggar touches Lotor on the arm and says, “I treasured your art,” and he recoils from her, saying, “Don’t touch me you filthy, filthy hag.” This moment feels like the show is criticizing Lotor for his rejection of Haggar, like it’s presenting Haggar as being not-that-bad, like Lotor is unjust in his hating Haggar. It’s offensive to me. If the most wanted production goal of this series was the EPs wanting Keith as Black Paladin, it seems like the second most wanted production goal was to retcon Haggar. Haggar was a horrible person, and the show’s insistence that we change to see her instead as a good person to whom bad things happened honestly feels like the show is gaslighting the audience. Zarkon then yells at Lotor, Lotor hits Morvok, and Bob looks at the camera and says, “Family, am I right?”
The whole moment is about presenting Lotor as the unreasonable one, like he’s responsible for Zarkon abusing him, and all of Haggar’s abuse is somehow our misinterpretation of her character. It’s played like abuse is funny. “Family, am I right?” How about, no.
Zarkon plays some card out of nowhere that makes the next Paladin have to play alone, and Zarkon picks “the dumb one.” The camera zooms in on Lance, who turns to his supposed friends and asks, “Who’s he talking about?” The laugh track laughs.
Lance is “dumb,” isn’t that funny? What is wrong with this show? What is wrong with the people who made this show? What is wrong with Tim Hedrick for writing this? What is wrong with Joaquim Dos Santos and Lauren Montgomery for approving this script? What is wrong with the people at Dreamworks for approving this script?
It would be different if Zarkon called Lance “dumb” and the other Paladins, Lance’s supposed friends, came to his defense. But they don’t. I can only then think that the EPs and the writers of this show do think of Lance as “the dumb one” and that they think it’s funny to write him that way.
Bob sends the gameshow to an advertisement break, and as they’re transitioning out, Lance continues, “Wait, I’m the dumb one?” It kind of makes me want to cry, like it hurts me that the show is treating Lance like this.
There’s an advertisement for that store in 2x07 “Space Mall,” where Lance and Pidge got the Kaltenecker. The alien salesperson doesn’t act here like he did there. The whole advertisement sequence is a total waste of time. I guess it’s supposed to be funny, but it’s not.
Coming back from the break, Bob again refers to Lance as “the dumb one.” Lance reacts, “I’m not too happy being referred to as ‘the dumb one’ like 18 times.” Bob looks at the camera, says, “Oh, it was only about four times, you big dumb-dumb,” and the laugh track laughs.
What is wrong with this show?
Lance has to play “Faces from the Past,” Bob asks Lance if he knows how the game works, Lance says an assumptive yes, and Bob looks at the camera and says, “What do you think, audience, do we believe this beautiful dumb-dumb?” The audience yells, “No!”
What is wrong with this show? What is wrong with the people who made this?
Lance is placed in an “isolation shield,” a clear tube with a mouth on top of it. The first “face from the past” almost lands on Kolivan before shifting at the last second to a faceless member of the Blade of Marmora. There’s no way for Lance to know who this guy is. There’s no way for anyone to know who he is because he’s wearing the traditional Blade of Marmora facemask that conceals his identity. Keith points to his blade, Bob says “that’s a pretty big clue,” but how’s it a clue?
I don’t even know why I’m arguing with this episode. This episode is total crap.
Lance guesses, “Blade… y. Bladey?” The answer is Antok. Everyone else acts like it’s absurd to not know Antok. The only absurd thing is that not just someone, but several people in this show’s production actually thought this was a script worth producing.
I would rather watch 23 minutes of the form-Voltron animation over and over than this episode.
The next face is one of the mermaid people with a squid on her head. Lance knows her as “the serious one.” He knows things she did, but not her name, which is apparently Swirn. The next face almost stops on Nyma, but then shifts at the last second to Rolo. Lance has trouble remembering his name, the other Paladins use their arms to spell out Rolo. Lance runs out of time, and then the Paladins change their arms to spell out “kill.”
The episode literally has Allura, Hunk, Pidge, and Keith express anger and frustration at Lance by saying they want to kill him. What is wrong with this show and what is wrong with the people who made it?
To the audience’s cheers, Bob explains that if Lance misses the next one, he’ll “be forced to hit this button, which will shoot you out of the studio and into the layer of the snick,” which is some big, insect-like or crab-like creature. The last face is Bii-Boh-Bi. How nice of this worthless episode to reference that worthless episode. Lance correctly and instantly answers this one.
Team Zarkon are dropped through a hole in the floor. Their purpose in the episode is concluded. I still don’t what the point of any of this episode is though. Bob brings out Bii-Boh-Bi. This character was not funny in the past, he’s not funny now. Bob continues to call Lance “dumb-dumb.”
Lance has to answer five questions correctly or end up in a tank of percolating green liquid “where [he’ll] be slowly cooked alive.” Bii-Boh-Bi is giving clues to Lance while the weird mouth on the top of the tube Lance is in starts swallowing the tube.
Lance says, “I have no idea what’s happening right now.” Same here, Lance.
Lance somehow guesses various “bi”s and “bo”s correctly. I guess it’s supposed to be funny, but it’s not. Lance does not get the last one correct, the mouth swallows him, and he gets ejected into the tank of liquid.
There’s another advertisement, this time for Vrepit Sal’s. Thankfully, at least, it’s quicker than the previous advertisement.
Lance says the liquid feels like it’s exfoliating him, and Bob replies, “Eventually it will eat through your skin.” There is something seriously wrong with the people who worked on this show, especially Tim Hedrick.
Bob asks the Paladins, who is going to play to free Lance, “who’s the brainiest of the team?” and they all instantly answer, Pidge. She has to play a hole of miniature golf. It takes a lot of time for her to set up her shot, which I guess is supposed to be funny. Pidge seems to accidentally hit the ball into the camera and then into Bob, but it’s clear she meant to do that as she tackles Bob to the ground, trying to arrange a chance for them to escape. Bob teleports back to his normal center-stage position, Pidge and Lance are teleported back to the rest of the group, and they’re now in the final stage of the gameshow. It makes no sense.
Bob says, “One of you will now be allowed to leave the game, the rest of you will be staying here with me forever.” They have to write down who they think should be the one to leave. Hunk votes for Allura because she’s “the princess, and she’s such a natural leader, you know. The universe needs her more than it needs the rest of us, plain and simple.” Of course, the show hasn’t had Allura be a leader since, like, season three.
Allura votes for Pidge, “She and her family have the best chance of rebuilding what my father started.” I guess this “rebuilding” is supposed to be a reference to the Castle Ship and Atlas? I would think Coran would be more capable than Pidge’s family at building a new Castle Ship since he spent the whole show maintaining and running the Castle nearly by himself.
Lance votes for Keith, “He’s our leader, plus he’s half-Galra, so I think he’s like, the future.” What does this mean? How is being half-Galra the future? Lotor was half-Galra too, but Lance certainly didn’t think of Lotor as being “the future.” Why is the show placing worth and value on a person based on this? This honestly feels racist. It’s like it’s a statement that Galra-supremacy is valid, so Zarkon was right the entire time?
Keith votes for Lance, saying, “I just don’t want to be stuck here for eternity with Lance.” Lance initially misinterprets this as a good thing before realizing that it’s an insult. This is supposed to be a team? These are supposed to be people who are friends? This episode is so messed up.
Pidge votes for Hunk, saying, “Hunk gets along with everybody. If anyone’s going to go out into the universe and bring people together, it’s Hunk.”
Bob is impressed that no one voted for themselves and that everyone got at least one vote. So, they all win. That’s the end of the gameshow.
The Paladins wake up in their Lions in space. So, yup, there’s no resolution to how the previous episode ended with the Lions being “in worse shape than ever.” They’re fine now. Whatever.
The Paladins begin to realize that, since they all experienced the gameshow, that it was real, not a dream, so that’s a giant cliché. Coran pops in at the sound of the name “Bob,” who he says is an “all-powerful, all-knowing interdimensional being who judges the worthiness of great warriors.” Keith replies, “The guy was kind of a jerk though, right?” The other Paladins seem to agree with him.
Then there’s another advertisement for the mermaid planet.
Is Bob supposed to be a reference to Bob Koplar from World Events Productions? If, as Keith says, Bob “was kind of a jerk,” does that mean this episode is all about Tim Hedrick complaining about Koplar and WEP? The executive producers were very public about their complaints that executives wouldn’t just step back and let them make the show however they wanted. As an executive of WEP, Bob Koplar could be one of the executives that JDS and LM referenced in their complaints. Hedrick left Voltron this season, and this episode is the first one where he shares Story Editor credit with Joshua Hamilton. If this episode is Hedrick criticizing Bob Koplar, then (regardless of what kind of person Koplar is) Hedrick is a really petty person. The same way it was seriously unprofessional for the show to have written the EPs’ complaints about having to keep Shiro into Coran’s dialog in 4x04 “The Voltron Show,” if “The Feud!” is Hedrick ranting about Koplar as he’s leaves the show, then that is also seriously unprofessional.
If there is some other possible explanation for what in the world this episode is supposed to be, I don’t know.
As much as other episodes of this show infuriate me, “The Feud!” is the absolute worst episode of Voltron Legendary Defender.
#voltron legendary defender#voltron#vld#voltron criticism#vld criticism#voltron critical#vld critical#vld season 7#vld 7x04#commentary
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VLD4x04 – “The Voltron Show!”
4x04 – “The Voltron Show!”
Well, this episode exists.
Coran’s big screaming rant before the Paladins’ final performance is something. I think it reveals a lot about what Joaquim Dos Santos and Lauren Montgomery were like as executive producers. There is a toxicity that has seeped into this show so significantly that Coran’s big rant, and a couple other moments before that too, are filled with a lot of the same public complaints about the show’s production that we’ve gotten from the EPs in interviews.
The idea that this show just didn’t have the time to show us how events affect characters is discredited by the existence of episodes like this one. I don’t see what this episode adds to the show. We have already seen the Paladins engaging in performances to try to convince planets to join the Coalition back in 4x01 “Code of Honor,” and this episode feels like repeating that story, which wasn’t even a good story to begin with.
Near the beginning of the episode, Voltron is used to help build/repair a hospital on some planet. Elite fighting unit Voltron is doing the work of building a hospital? Shouldn’t this be something that the people on this planet already did themselves? Even if the hospital is to treat war veterans, as Coran says, I would think building it would be something that Coalition members could do as part of their contribution, not something Voltron itself would be assigned to. As I’ve said in previous commentaries, this season feels so casual compared to the past three.
Coran has provided the Paladins with a script for them to perform for the hospital’s patients. Reading the script, Pidge says, “This isn’t even factually accurate.” Coran replies, “Well, this is the legend of Voltron, not the documentary of Voltron.” In other words, it’s propaganda. I don’t think producing and manipulating people with propaganda is a heroic thing to do, so it’s offensive that this show has our supposed heroes doing it. Coran tells Allura that she’s going to be playing Keith. That Allura is weirdly angry, growling and distorting her face as the camera zooms in on her, is proof that the writers of this show did not write these characters to be friends. Keith’s absence here would be the perfect moment for the characters to express some sadness that he’s not there and worry about his safety. Instead, the episode has Allura annoyed that she even has to think about him and none of the other Paladins say anything about Keith at all. “Besides, playing Keith is easy: just act really moody.” Because that’s all Keith is? It seems like another instance of the show’s writers’ concept of characterization as being nothing but single bullet-points.
Coran’s script has Voltron having to “save the helpless Princess Allura.” Because it’s funny for Coran to reduce her into a helpless damsel? Taking away her power and agency for Coran’s story is going to cause the audience they’re performing for to feel empowered and inspired to join the Coalition? “Thank you, team, for always being by my side through thick or thin,” Shiro reads from his script. Too bad there are moments throughout this show where they’re not. Anyone who had been in their audience left during it. Lance wants to get back to air shows with explosions.
Once Coran is alone, one patient comes back in: the Unilu shopkeeper in 2x07 “Space Mall.” He offers some device that he describes as a “mind enhancer.” They negotiate in the same style that they did in “Space Mall.” I liked it back in that episode, and on its own I like this second round of it, but it feels out of place.
The next planet Voltron goes to for their performance is one where they have terrible weather on every day except one. I guess it works as a joke, but it’s certainly not realistic. They’re a day late, and the weather is bad again. Coran says he “forgot to calculate for time dilation.” This show has never included the issue of time dilation in the show’s methods of interstellar travel before. In space-based science fiction, ignoring time dilation while travelling at high speed is a conceit I’m willing to use. But if this show is going to reference it, then they need to actually use it in every instance in which it would be an issue, but they don’t. They only want it briefly to be used as a punchline to a joke here. Sigh.
Lance says to Coran, “I don’t know if you’re cut out to be managing this sort of thing.” Well, since the show had him do so back at the beginning of the season, the idea that he can’t now is baffling. Out of every main character, Coran is the one who’s been shown to be most capable of handling the stress of keeping everything running. This episode takes one of his characteristics, one of his strengths, and suddenly pretends it doesn’t exist.
So, he effectively uses performance enhancing drugs by placing the thing he bought from the Unilu guy under his pillow, which turns out to house some slug-like creature that crawls into Coran’s ear while he’s sleeping. Coran never reacts to the pain of something that large crawling into his ear. And the slug keeps going, somehow getting into Coran’s brain. Now, Coran is not human, so maybe one can get into an Altean’s brain through their ear, I doubt it, but maybe. I don’t buy whatsoever that this whole process is painless though.
They return to the mall. Coran behaves very oddly. Pidge picks up on it, but no one backs her up and everyone just goes along with it. It seems the writer and director intend his behavior to be funny, but I don’t find any of this funny at all. Nor do I find this performance of the Paladins funny either. The small audience that gathers around the performance applauds, one guy wants to join the Coalition. Seriously, this is the best use of an elite combat unit’s time? In this very episode, they’ve made a point that their recruitment efforts have been on planetary and solar system level of scale, and here they’re targeting individuals? Building a coalition on scale to fight a universe-spanning empire would be about diplomatic work with governmental leaders. This plot acts like building alliances to fight a war is done through commercial marketing.
They then head to another planet, and yet again this show doesn’t have a planet shaped like planets are shaped. This time, it looks like a twisted pickle or baguette. Sigh. It’s Bii-Boh-Bi’s planet. I really do not like Bii-Boh-Bi, nor his species. The show clearly thinks they’re funny, but I don’t find a single thing about them funny. This time, the Paladins’ show has them all ice skating. “Does anybody feel kind of stupid right now?” Hunk asks. I know exactly how you feel right now, Hunk.
After the performance, Coran gives a presentation. “I’ve worked up very specific personas for each of you. This is going to help the audience connect on a much deeper level with each team member. There’s Lover Boy Lance. […] Science Wiz Pidge. […] Lone Wolf Keith […]. Hunk, from now on, you’ll be Humerous Hunk. And last, but not least, Shiro the Hero.” With this scene, it seems like the writers of this show know that they are way too often reductive of characters to a single characteristic, so why don’t they fix that in their writing then?
They perform again on the Bii-Boh-Bi planet. If the goal is reaching a lot of different people in the universe, why are they performing multiple times for one planet? Coran, to supposedly help Hunk be funny, has Hunk purposefully tripped because nothing says funny like hurting someone. And then Coran adds fart sound effects. I’m not going to pretend that a fart sound can’t be funny, but this is just Coran being mean.
Shiro, at least briefly, remembers that they’re supposed to be helming a war effort, and he wants to give a speech about it during the performance. Coran literally tells Shiro to “stop talking. You’re Shiro the Hero. Heroes don’t speak. […] Muscles speak louder than words.” Ugh.
Later, Pidge talks to Coran. “I’m having real issues with the science you put in the script. It doesn’t make sense.” Coran responds, “It doesn’t need to.” This episode is so meta and self-referential. It’s like the writers of Voltron Legendary Defender are condescendingly mocking their viewers. So VLD’s writers know how their writing is bad, they just don’t want to do anything to make it better and resent anyone expecting them to do so.
They perform a third show on Bii-Boh-Bi’s planet, and maybe a fourth.
Coran wants to change their show some more. He wants Voltron to talk. He wants “new weapons and new outfits.” Shiro counters that they only have one performance left, this one is going to be broadcast at least on galactic scale (which tells me these previous performances on Bii-Boh-Bi’s planet were just for Bii-Boh-Bi’s people). The slug in Coran’s brain does whatever and Coran starts freaking out even more. He has a face of rage, but everyone is unnaturally chill. Yes, Coran’s freakout is being played for humor by the show, but it’s disturbing seeing everyone not reacting with a proportionate response to his behavior.
Allura says, “You must realize that we need to get back to fighting Zarkon.” Funny, I’ve been saying that this whole season. Coran screams at Allura, “We are fighting Zarkon, six nights a week and twice on the astral conflux.” It feels like the writers are aware of how bad what they’ve written this season is but that they think it’s unreasonable for anyone to complain about it being badly written.
Coran continues to scream, no one reacts the way someone would react if they were being screamed at. “You’re a bunch of quitters. Quitters. I’m a visionary. I have thoughts. Ideas. I don’t need you anyway. I’ll rewrite the show. Get rid of the whole lot of you. Replace you with new Paladins. And the show will be better than ever before. Except for you Shiro. I’ll never get rid of you. You’re our most popular character.”
What the…?
So, if Coran is supposed to represent the Executive Producers of Voltron Legendary Defender venting their frustrations about executive interference keeping them from doing anything and everything they want with the show, then this is not a flattering representation. We’ve had interviews with Joaquim Dos Santos and Lauren Montgomery now in which they’ve let us know that they had wanted to replace characters. For example, they wanted to kill Hunk and have Axca take over his spot as the Yellow Paladin. And they notoriously wanted to kill off Shiro multiple times but have said they were told they had to bring him back. Literally written into Coran’s dialog are the EP’s complaints about having to keep Shiro in the show.
I don’t know how this episode didn’t get Dos Santos and Montgomery fired. They literally wrote their problems with working for Dreamworks and with WEP into the show’s dialog. It’s like this episode exists for the sole purpose of having this rant by Coran. They took a whole episode’s time to put their whining complaints about making the show into the show itself. When you are putting any behind-the-scenes production drama into the show on purpose, you are demonstrating a severely dysfunctional creative process and work environment.
Allura briefly is “concerned about Coran” but she never acts out of her concern. Hunk is fully dismissive of Coran’s behavior as being nonimportant; friends do not so easily ignore the obvious sign a friend needs help, but they do here on VLD.
While the Paladins are about to go on stage, Coran returns to another planet and gets the big animal that lives there to have it attack the Paladins during the performance. I guess the Paladins didn’t notice Coran taking the Castle Ship and leaving them on Bii-Boh-Bi’s planet? People throughout the universe watch the broadcast. A Galra, who I think is the mallcop from “Space Mall,” is playing with Paladin action figures while watching. The mermaids from 2x02 “The Depths” are also shown to be watching; I don’t know why they specifically were chosen to be shown.
They form Voltron as part of the performance, and then Coran tries to use the creature to attack Voltron, but he gets thrown off as the creature chases the lighting effects around the stadium. The creature nearly kills members of the audience before Voltron can grab it. This creature can shoot rings of explosive energy from its mouth. Sigh.
Coran experiences some intense pain, finally, from having a slug leeching onto his brain. He asks Bii-Boh-Bi to help him, and Bii-Boh-Bi literally reaches into Coran’s ear and pulls the slug off his brain. This episode is absolutely ridiculous. One, that Bii-Bo-Bi jumps to the conclusion that the problem is the slug, but even more so, that he can reach in Coran’s ear and get to his brain. Free from the brainworm, Coran tells the Paladins, who, given their dialog, hadn’t already figured out that the creature was not a special effect. They lure the creature away and the performance is suddenly over.
Coran later apologizes. Shiro says “the Coalition is bigger than ever.” There has been no diplomatic meeting, no writing or signing any treaties, nothing that would be actual indicators of the development of the Coalition. This show has used those indicators before, like when the five alien leaders met for a diplomatic dinner on the Castle Ship in 3x01 “Changing of the Guard.”
I can’t think of any reason for this episode to exist. It doesn’t do anything to advance the plot. It doesn’t give any big exploration of character. It’s not even slightly funny. The only thing I can think of is that this whole episode was done so the EPs could write their frustrations with their job into the show.
Part of why I originally became interested in Voltron Legendary Defender is because so many of those who worked on Avatar The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra were working on this show. I thought the quality of storytelling in those shows would carry over to VLD. Going into VLD, I had respect for Dos Santos, Montgomery, and Tim Hedrick because they came from those shows. I didn’t realize until really recently that Joshua Hamilton wrote for AtLA and Korra too, so I should include him in this list too. But VLD is nowhere even remotely as well written as AtLA and Korra. For AtLA, I now give a lot, if not most, of the credit to Aaron Ehasz. I’m loving what he’s doing currently with The Dragon Prince. But I also have to give a lot of credit to Mike DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. Whatever good work Dos Santos, Montgomery, Hedrick, and Hamilton did for AtLA and Korra, it’s because they had better bosses. With VLD, Dos Santos and Montgomery became the bosses, and I primarily blame them for the problems with the storytelling of this show.
I can’t get over that this episode literally puts the EPs public complaints and claims about executive interference into the characters’ dialog. Like I said earlier, I’m surprised they didn’t get fired for this.
#voltron legendary defender#voltron#vld#voltron criticism#vld criticism#voltron critical#vld critical#vld season 4#vld 4x04#commentary
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