REPORT PROPOSAL - VOLTRON
For this post, I am going to be looking at Voltron from 1984, and the reboot Voltron: Legendary Defender from 2016.
VOLTRON (1984)
Voltron, also known as Voltron: Defender of the Universe, was an animated series that ran from 1984 to 1985. It was directed by Franklin Coford, and was an adaptation of the anime series Beast King GoLion from 1981.
The series revolves around 5 characters; Keith, Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Sven. They each pilot a giant robotic lion, who can combine together to make the humanoid mech Voltron. The storyline was very basic, with episodes mostly involving Team Voltron fighting the forces of King Zarkon and protect Princess Allura.
Voltron originally came about when producer Ted Koplar assembled a team to translate the anime series Beast King GoLion into a series that would fit better for an American audience. This process of redubbing and re-editing episodes led to differing storylines and dialogue, while still using the original animation. These episodes were known as Lion Force Voltron Part 1. This same process has been used for media like Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers (1993) and Dougal (2005). After 52 episoes, Part 2 of the series came out with 20 wholly original American-made episodes.
A secondary series spun off soon after, called Vehicle Team Voltron (1984). It followed a similar production process to the first part of the original run of episodes, this time being redubs and re-edits of Dairugger XV (1982).
The series lasted for over 120 episodes and a single television special. These comprise of both parts of Lion Force Voltron and Vehicle Team Voltron, and the one hour special Fleet of Doom.
The series was fairly well received, gaining a 7.9/10 on iMDB, and an 8/10 from TV.com. Common Sense Media gives the series a 3/5, stating it's "still OK for kids". Unfortunately, there is no Rotten Tomatoes data for this series.
VOLTRON: LEGENDARY DEFENDER (2016)
Voltron: Legendary Defender was an animated series that acted as a reboot to the original Voltron series. It ran from 2016 to 2018 on Netflix, and was produced by DreamWorks Animation Television.
The series offers a slightly different cast lineup to it's predecessor; while Lance, Keith, Pidge and Hunk are still here, Sven is replaced with Shiro. Sven is instead classed as an alternate universe version of Shiro. The five still pilot 5 robot lions, and combine together to form Voltron to protect Princess Allura against Emperor Zarkon and Prince Lotor. Unlike it's predecessor, Legendary Defender was made from the ground up in-studio.
The series took on a serialised structure, with major storylines and elements carrying over between episodes and seasons. These can range from relationships between characters, character deaths, etc.
Voltron lasted for eight seasons on Netflix, with a total of 76 episodes. It was received well by critics, with a 95% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. iMDB rates it an 8.1/10 and TV.com gives it an 8.8/10. Common Sense Media rates Legendary Defender a 4/5, saying the reboot updates the original in "tense but fantastic form".
However, audience reviews tell a different story. While earlier seasons have high ratings (the first three seasons have an audience rating average of ~95%), they started to dip starting with season 4 (79%). It's final season stands at 6% audience rating, and the show on the whole has a 75% audience rating.
Many fans took issue with how later seasons addressed LGBTQ+ content. Legendary Defender had been no stranger to introducing aspects of LGBTQ+ representation into the series, primarily with Shiro being revealed to be gay. However, as the later seasons went on, fans were upset that the representation was seemingly shoehorned in. Shiro's ex-fiance, Adam, was killed midway through season 7, in what fans have referred to as "burying your gays" (a term that refers to a member of a same-sex relationship dying in fiction - source). The showrunners themselves have admitted that their LGBTQ+ representation was "clunky", especially concerning Shiro's wedding.
VOLTRON (1984)
Voltron, also known as Voltron: Defender of the Universe, was an animated series that ran from 1984 to 1985. It was directed by Franklin Coford, and was an adaptation of the anime series Beast King GoLion from 1981.
The series revolves around 5 characters; Keith, Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Sven. They each pilot a giant robotic lion, who can combine together to make the humanoid mech Voltron. The storyline was very basic, with episodes mostly involving Team Voltron fighting the forces of King Zarkon and protect Princess Allura.
Voltron originally came about when producer Ted Koplar assembled a team to translate the anime series Beast King GoLion into a series that would fit better for an American audience. This process of redubbing and re-editing episodes led to differing storylines and dialogue, while still using the original animation. These episodes were known as Lion Force Voltron Part 1. This same process has been used for media like Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers (1993) and Dougal (2005). After 52 episoes, Part 2 of the series came out with 20 wholly original American-made episodes.
A secondary series spun off soon after, called Vehicle Team Voltron (1984). It followed a similar production process to the first part of the original run of episodes, this time being redubs and re-edits of Dairugger XV (1982).
The series lasted for over 120 episodes and a single television special. These comprise of both parts of Lion Force Voltron and Vehicle Team Voltron, and the one hour special Fleet of Doom.
The series was fairly well received, gaining a 7.9/10 on iMDB, and an 8/10 from TV.com. Common Sense Media gives the series a 3/5, stating it's "still OK for kids". Unfortunately, there is no Rotten Tomatoes data for this series.
VOLTRON: LEGENDARY DEFENDER (2016)
Voltron: Legendary Defender was an animated series that acted as a reboot to the original Voltron series. It ran from 2016 to 2018 on Netflix, and was produced by DreamWorks Animation Television.
The series offers a slightly different cast lineup to it's predecessor; while Lance, Keith, Pidge and Hunk are still here, Sven is replaced with Shiro. Sven is instead classed as an alternate universe version of Shiro. The five still pilot 5 robot lions, and combine together to form Voltron to protect Princess Allura against Emperor Zarkon and Prince Lotor. Unlike it's predecessor, Legendary Defender was made from the ground up in-studio.
The series took on a serialised structure, with major storylines and elements carrying over between episodes and seasons. These can range from relationships between characters, character deaths, etc.
Voltron lasted for eight seasons on Netflix, with a total of 76 episodes. It was received well by critics, with a 95% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. iMDB rates it an 8.1/10 and TV.com gives it an 8.8/10. Common Sense Media rates Legendary Defender a 4/5, saying the reboot updates the original in "tense but fantastic form".
However, audience reviews tell a different story. While earlier seasons have high ratings (the first three seasons have an audience rating average of ~95%), they started to dip starting with season 4 (79%). It's final season stands at 6% audience rating, and the show on the whole has a 75% audience rating.
Many fans took issue with how later seasons addressed LGBTQ+ content. Legendary Defender had been no stranger to introducing aspects of LGBTQ+ representation into the series, primarily with Shiro being revealed to be gay. However, as the later seasons went on, fans were upset that the representation was seemingly shoehorned in. Shiro's ex-fiance, Adam, was killed midway through season 7, in what fans have referred to as "burying your gays" (a term that refers to a member of a same-sex relationship dying in fiction - source). The showrunners themselves have admitted that their LGBTQ+ representation was "clunky", especially concerning Shiro's wedding.
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