80's Voltron: Lion and Vehicle

Television, Movies Games and Books Anime/Manga
#1

Recently I did a complete watch through of the Lion Voltron series. I have now moved on to the Vehicle series. So in this thread I would like to hear your opinions on the two.

For me Lion Force is far superior to the Vehicle Force. There is something primal about it. Five lions joining to form one super robot. The roar when they form Voltron, or the Blazing Sword, sends chills down my spine. It just radiates raw power. There is something from moment one in the series that draws you in and doesn’t let you go. Voltron seems to be unstoppable. He’ll never run out of power and will always win. I wish they would have gotten more episodes made for the American audience.

Now for the well not so good Voltron. I personally don’t think there is anything special about 15 vehicles coming together to form one super robot. That to me seems like its a given. It doesn’t scream mystery like re Lions do. It’s just tech based. The Lions was a blend of magic and science. In the Vehicle Force there are three teams. Air, Sea, and Land team. Each consisting of 5 vehicles each. Sure the five vehicles from the same team can join into one vehicle, but again tech. this Voltron is lacking a lot. There is no display of raw power. It just forms and does it’s thing quickly. There are instances they can’t even form Voltron untill enough power is stored. Plus when they do form they only have 5 minutes. What’s up with that. So if the bad guys really want to win the could. Not that it would ever happen on the show. All they would have to do is destroy all the vehicles before they could form Voltron if there was a stored power issue. If they couldn’t do that all they would have to do is avoid Voltron for 5 minutes till the pier ran out. I will watch all 52 episodes just so I can watch the Fleet of Doom movie which has both Voltrons in it.

I know the Japanese source material for the two shows are unrelated. I have watched a few GoLion. The material for Lion Voltron. Yes it is much more brutal but that is expected. I will be watching both GoLion and the original Vehicle material after I watch both English shows. Just so I can see the differences.

Maybe I would have liked the Vehicle Voltron if it wasn’t Voltron. Maybe if WEP would have kept it it’s own show with it’s own plot it might have worked better.

That’s all I have to say so let me know what you guys think.

#2

You’ve hit on my favorite show as a kid. As you said, “I know the Japanese source material for the two shows are unrelated.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armored_Fleet_Dairugger_XV

"Changes for Voltron version

Dairugger XV and GoLion are not related in any way, in contrast to the U.S. version (the coincidental similarities in design, most notably in the face, are due to having the same mechanical designer and a significant portion of the same animation staff)."

I’m just providing some background for people who may not know.

As for, “Maybe I would have liked the Vehicle Voltron if it wasn’t Voltron.” Are you saying like Star Trek (2009) might have been better if it wasn’t Star Trek, or Starship Troopers (the movie) might have been better if it wasn’t called Starship Troopers? When I was a kid, two separate Voltrons made sense to me. I was able to keep them separate in my head, but realize they were both in the same universe. shrugs Plus, I remember watching the Lions form Voltron and thinking something like, “But, their legs and arms can’t really occupy that space like that…” Or, “Why can’t I see Voltron’s face when Black Lion roars?” But, I had no such thoughts with the Vehicle Voltron. (:

I’m prolly the only person I know who preferred the Vehicle Voltron. The animation looked cleaner and the concept made more sense to me than a magical robot. I do wonder if people who prefer the Lion Voltron also prefer Star Wars (IV-VI) over ST:TNG, or whether there’s no correlation.

That said, I haven’t seen any Voltron in over a decade except for…

VOLTRON: The End - (Live action short directed by Alex Albrecht)

//youtu.be/1g6QJ5TfA7w

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1g6QJ5TfA7w&hd=1

waits for the seanscream to end

Back to the point, I have yet to come across another person who preferred the Vehicle Voltron like I did.

Edit: One thing that tripped me out later on was finding out one voice actress did all of the female roles. Princess Alura and Hagggar the Witch were the same person. d: Blew my mind! (:

I was a little annoyed how there were two Haggars though…

#3

I actually liked the Vehicle Voltron better than the Lions. Although in my recent re-watch earlier this year I saw the strength and allure of the Lion Voltron story. Perhaps it was just that the Lion Voltron was Arus-centric and the Vehicle Voltron was more Galactic or Universe Centric. In fact the connection World Events Productions (The re-creator of the American Voltron Series) tried to make was that King Zarkon was just a part of the greater evil alliance.

Perhaps it was because I never fully grasped or understood the magic of the Lion Voltron.

Perhaps it was because I loved the base ship of the Vehicle Voltron (The Explorer).

But for whatever reason I preferred the Vehicle Voltron and still do. That said, the story behind the Lion Voltron is incredible and I cannot wait to see the live-action version on the big screen. In fact, I might just book a special trip down to GWCville to see it with the Reverend opening night.

Oh - and that fanfic video of Commander Keith and the Red Lion. Some of the BEST fanfic I’ve EVER seen. I wish I could see more of that on the big screen!

~Shooter Out

#4

I did not like either of the Voltrons, I was too old when the American versions of them were released to fall under their allure. I found them both annoying and shallow and poorly produced, much like Battle of the Planets… I probably would enjoy the original shows, they were no doubt more mature. I have heard Gatchaman was vastly superior to Battle of the Planets. And I imagine the same is true for GoLion. I need to find a stream for watching GoLion now, my curiosity is peaked. :slight_smile:

//youtu.be/_MCyhyYjweU

He he, not your daddy’s Voltron… :smiley:

#5

Whoa. I almost want that DVD. I’m scared to to look it up because if it’s cheap enough, I’d get it.

Plus, courtesy of Badgerspoon on G+…

#6

I barely remember Vehicle Voltron so I’d have to watch it again to be sure, but I loved Lion Voltron. It captured my imagination in a way that the other series didn’t. Thanks for the youtube link fastcart, it was great.

#7

I didn’t remember about Vehicle before either. But now that I watching more and more I can see why people liked it. I still don’t like it more than Lion Voltron but it’s good. I will just have to wait and see untill I watch the whole series.