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Month: February 2018

Somewhere in Time: Lion Forge Comics, VR Chronicles, and Voltron Legendary Defender

Posted on February 28, 2018 by Greg Tyler

Updated October 25, 2018, to include information from Volume 3 of the comics.

Because Voltron Legendary Defender is serialized, it’s interesting to try to figure out when different works of tie-in fiction take place. As of this writing, there have been three works of tie-in fiction that aren’t short story adaptations of episodes of the show:

  1. Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 1 – A five-issue comic book mini-series by Lion Forge Comics, published between July and November 2016
  2. Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 2: Pilgrimage – A five-issue comic book mini-series by Lion Forge Comics, published between October and December 2017
  3. Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 3 – A five-issue comic book mini-series by Lion Forge Comics, published between July and November 2018
  4. DreamWorks Voltron VR Chronicles – A virtual reality experience by Digital Domain, released on September 26, 2017

Let’s look at each of these and try to figure out when its story takes place relative to episodes of the Voltron Legendary Defender TV series.


Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 1

Issue 1 establishes that Princess Allura is resting from her having saved the life of the Balmera. This places all of Volume 1 between the first-season episodes “Rebirth” and “Crystal Venom.”

Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 2: Pilgrimage

Issue 1 states that “the Paladins of Voltron have just learned of the existence of ‘The Blade of Marmora.'” The Paladins learn of the Blade of Marmora in the second-season episode “Shiro’s Escape,” so all of Volume 2 occurs between “Shiro’s Escape” and “Greening the Cube.”

Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 3

Each issue’s credits page states that “this series’ story takes place in the Voltron universe between seasons 4 & 5.”

DreamWorks Voltron VR Chronicles

This story focuses on Lance, who is still Paladin of Blue Lion. The Paladins form Voltron without effort, Lance is already familiar with Blue Lion’s Sonic Cannon, the teludav of the Castle of Lions is operational, and Shiro is still Paladin of Black Lion. This places the story sometime after “The Depths,” when Lance discovers the Sonic Cannon, and before “Blackout,” when Shiro vanishes. The story features Commander Morvok, who was first seen in “The Ark of Taujeer,” but there is no solid evidence to indicate whether “The Ark of Taujeer” takes place before or after DreamWorks Voltron VR Chronicles.

We know it can’t take place between…

  • “The Depths” and “Shiro’s Escape” – Because Shiro spends the entire time in recovery from the injuries that he suffered during “Across the Universe” (which occurred mostly in parallel with “The Depths”)
  • “Greening the Cube” and “Eye of the Storm” – Because “Eye of the Storm” picks up right after “Greening the Cube” ends
  • “Eye of the Storm” and “The Ark of Taujeer” – Because the teludav of the Castle of Lions doesn’t have enough teludav lenses to operate
  • “The Ark of Taujeer” and “Space Mall” – Because the teludav of the Castle of Lions still needs scaultrite lenses
  • “Space Mall” and “The Blade of Marmora” – Because at the end of “Space Mall,” the Castle sets course for the headquarters of The Blade of Marmora, and in “The Blade of Marmora,” the Castle arrives.
  • “The Blade of Marmora” and “The Belly of the Weblum” – Because at the end of “The Blade of Marmora,” Kolivan boards the Castle and says that the Blades and the Paladins must make immediate plans to stop Zarkon, and when “The Belly of the Weblum” starts, the plan has already been devised.
  • “The Belly of the Weblum” and “Escape from Beta Traz” – Because the episodes occur in parallel
  • “Escape from Beta Traz” and “Stayin’ Alive” – Because the episodes occur mostly in parallel, and the Paladins and the Castle of Lions, separated as of the end of “Escape from Beta Traz,” reunite during “Stayin’ Alive”
  • “Stayin’ Alive” and “Best Laid Plans” – Because “Stayin’ Alive” ends with the Castle and Paladins on Olkarion, and the Paladins discussing the upcoming execution of their battle plan against Zarkon, and “Best Laid Plans” begins on Olkarion with the Castle and Paladins still on Olkarion, preparing to execute their battle plan against Zarkon
  • “Best Laid Plans” and “Blackout” – Because “Blackout” begins immediately after “Best Laid Plans”

By process of elimination, DreamWorks Voltron VR Chronicles can take place only between “Shiro’s Escape” and “Greening the Cube.” This means that, chronologically, Morvok’s appearance in DreamWorks Voltron VR Chronicles predates his appearance in “The Ark of Taujeer.”

DreamWorks Voltron VR Chronicles and Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 2: Pilgrimage both take place during the gap between “Shiro’s Escape” and “Greening the Cube.” Since Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 2: Pilgrimage, Issue #1, states that “the Paladins of Voltron have just learned of the existence of ‘The Blade of Marmora,'” it’s reasonable to assume that Voltron Legendary Defender Volume 2: Pilgrimage takes place just after “Shiro’s Escape,” and before DreamWorks Voltron VR Chronicles.


With more tie-in fiction being published in the coming months, such as some Simon Spotlight short stories, it will be interesting to try to figure out when they take place. For now, we’re out of time.

Posted in Merchandise, Special Features, Voltron, Voltron: Legendary Defender

Matchbox 1985 and 1986 Toy Fair Catalogs

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Greg Tyler

In the 1980s, and still today, toy makers try to entice retailers to purchase current and possible future toy offerings at an annual trade show called New York Toy Fair. In the pre-Internet era of the 1980s, a toy maker would give printed catalogs to retailers, so that they would be aware of the toys that the company made, how to order them, and other information.

In the mid-1980s, Voltron: Defender of the Universe was a hot toy property, and Matchbox was Voltron’s first licensed toy maker. All of Matchbox’s Voltron toy offerings were modified re-releases of toys that had originally been produced by Popy, later Bandai, for the anime programs that were adapted to make Voltron.

Here are some photos of Matchbox’s 1985 and 1986 Toy Fair catalogs!


1985

Front Cover

What’s that on the cover? Is that Voltron? Yes — it’s Voltron I! There’s not a lion to be found… yet. Given Matchbox’s history with small toy cars, this Voltron does seem to be the most appropriate robot to feature on the cover of the catalog.

Pages 48-49

It’s Voltron I! This mighty robot had five toy offerings:

  • 700211 Voltron I Air Warrior Set
  • 700212 Voltron I Space Warrior Set
  • 700213 Voltron I Land Warrior Set
  • 700002 Voltron I Miniature Space Warrior Robot
  • 700210 Voltron I The Deluxe Warrior Set.

If I were a nitpicker, I would point out that the forearm vehicles are swapped in the photo of The Deluxe Warrior Set — and in the photo of the Land Warrior Set. I’d also point out that the Air Warrior Set, Space Warrior Set, and Land Warrior Set did not have die-cast parts. It’s good that I’m not a nitpicker.

Note the “NEW! TV” markings on each page. Having a television program as a promotional outlet for toys was and still is hugely important to a retailer.

Pages 50-51

It’s Voltron II! This mighty robot had four toy offerings:

  • 700100 Voltron II Miniature Red Gladiator Robot
  • 700110 Voltron II Miniature Blue Gladiator Robot
  • 700120 Voltron II Miniature Black Gladiator Robot
  • 700220 Voltron II The Deluxe Gladiator Set.

These toys are also “NEW! TV” — but Voltron II never appeared on TV, at least not in the Voltron: Defender of the Universe program. To my knowledge, Matchbox never even televised ads for this poor guy, who incidentally is horribly mis-transformed on page 51. As shown in the catalog, the Blue Gladiator Robot’s head seems to be stuck in the ro-butt of the Black Gladiator Robot, whose head seems to be stuck in the ro-butt of the Red Gladiator Robot. It’s a good thing that robots don’t feel pain.

Pages 52-53

It’s Voltron III — or what most people today simply call Voltron. This mighty robot had five toy offerings:

  • 700201 Voltron III Giant Black Lion Robot
  • 700202 Voltron III Yellow and Green Mighty Lion Robots Set
  • 700203 Voltron III Blue and Red Mighty Lion Robots Set
  • 700001 Voltron III Miniature Lion Space Robot
  • 700200 Voltron III The Deluxe Lion Set

Again, it’s good that I’m not a nitpicker, because if I were, I’d point out that, in the photo of The Deluxe Lion Set:

  • The rear feet of Blue and Yellow Lions are pointed incorrectly.
  • The front legs of Blue and Yellow Lions are posed incorrectly.
  • Black Lion’s rear legs (Voltron’s thighs) are posed very strangely.
  • Black Lion’s shoulders (Voltron’s shoulders) are oriented incorrectly.
  • Black Lion has a yellow button on its left shoulder. This play feature was never present in the released Voltron toy.

Voltron III’s “NEW! TV” markings are the most apropos of the three robots, because after the first run of Voltron: Defender of the Universe, “Voltron I” all but disappeared from television, and as I already mentioned, “Voltron II” never made it to TV.


1986

Front Cover

What the heck are those toys? They aren’t Voltron toys, and more strangely, they aren’t the tiny, die-cast toy cars for which Matchbox was best known. Read on, fearless reader!

Table of Contents

Voltron scored two fewer pages in 1986 than it enjoyed in 1985. Then… there’s this thing called Robotech, which spanned 36 pages — whereas Matchbox’s traditional die-cast cars had only 22 pages. What gives?

Pages 30-31

If you’re thinking that these toys look like 1985’s “Voltron I” toys, then you’re thinking correctly. At some point, Matchbox must have gotten a memo from World Events Productions that the Roman numerals became passe sometime between when the TV program’s pilot episodes were made and when the “real” episodes were made. The renamed offerings were:

  • 700211 Strato-Fighter
  • 700212 Aqua-Fighter
  • 700213 Turbo-Terrain-Fighter
  • 700002 Miniature Vehicle Team Voltron
  • 700210 Vehicle Team Voltron

Why was the “Aqua-Fighter” previously called the “Space Warrior?” I have no idea.

Pages 32-33

By 1986, poor “Voltron II” had disappeared even from Matchbox’s toy offerings. Fortunately “Voltron III” was still around, albeit renamed. The 1986 offerings for this Voltron robot were:

  • 700201 Giant Black Lion
  • 700202 Yellow and Green Lions
  • 700203 Blue and Red Lions
  • 700001 Miniature Lion Force Voltron
  • 700200 Lion Force Voltron
  • 700401 Blazing Sword Set
  • 700402 Miniature Blazing Sword Set

The new-to-1986 items, 700401 and 700402, probably came along because someone at Matchbox realized that Voltron had become kind of well known for using a sword.

The Lion Force Voltron toy is once again mis-transformed:

  • The rear feet of Blue and Yellow Lions are pointed incorrectly.
  • The front legs of Blue Lion seem to be posed incorrectly.
  • Black Lion’s shoulders (Voltron’s shoulders) are oriented correctly; however, Black Lion’s lower front legs are sticking out as if whoever set up the toy didn’t know that the lower front legs could be folded inside the shoulders.

Pages 34-35

These pages have nothing to do with Voltron, but they have everything to do with the catalog’s cover, as well as the most prominently featured licensed property in the catalog: Robotech, another animated program made by adapting multiple anime programs. Matchbox put a huge investment into Robotech. The company launched an enormous product line targeted at boys and girls, and it was co-financing the production of a 65-episode sequel to Robotech, called Robotech II: The Sentinels. Unfortunately retailer interest at 1986 New York Toy Fair was well below expectations. This and other factors led to Matchbox abandoning Robotech II: The Sentinels mid-production. But that’s a story for a different website.


And there you have it — Voltron as it appeared in Matchbox’s 1985 and 1986 Toy Fair retailer catalogs.

Posted in Lion Force Voltron, Merchandise, Special Features, Toys, Vehicle Team Voltron, Voltron, Voltron: Defender of the Universe

Special Deals on Han Cholo and Let’s Voltron Store Merchandise

Posted on February 20, 2018 by Greg Tyler

Now until March 5, Han Cholo is offering 20% off their upcoming Voltron Legendary Defender Stainless Steel Lucky Yellow Lion Paw Pendant — and all other Voltron merchandise — if you use promo code LETSVOLTRON at checkout on their website.

On TeePublic, you can win a $100 swag bag of merchandise from the Let’s Voltron store! Here’s how to enter. The promotion ends March 5!

(Neither Han Cholo nor Let’s Voltron are sponsors of or are sponsored by this website or its author.)

Posted in Let's Voltron Podcast, Merchandise, News, Websites

Lauren Montgomery’s Captain Olia Head Canon

Posted on February 4, 2018 by Greg Tyler

Captain Olia is one of the more intriguing guest characters in the fourth season of Voltron Legendary Defender. She appears in only three episodes, and speaks in only two, but her canine-like visual design and her distinctive, sweet-but-tough voice, provided by Jessica McKenna, make her easy to like and easy to remember.

Olia first appears in a brief cameo in the season-opening “Code of Honor,” as one of many rebel fighters on Olkarion.

She next appears in “Begin the Blitz,” commanding the rebel fleet that attacks the Zaiforge Cannon orbiting Teq. Her shipmates are Matt Holt and an unnamed, possibly cybernetic character. Olia’s struggle continues in the season-ending “A New Defender.”

On October 12, 2017, Voltron Legendary Defender co-executive producer Lauren Montgomery revealed on her Tumblr page that Olia is an homage to Hayao Miyazaki’s Sherlock Hound.

In an interview with Marc Morrell and myself for an upcoming episode of Let’s Voltron: The Official Voltron Podcast, to be released on February 7, Lauren mentioned that she had developed a “head canon” backstory for Olia, and that she’d tell the backstory if people were interested.

Afterward I reached out to Lauren and asked her if she would share Olia’s backstory with LionsAndPilotsAndBots.com — and she did! Keep in mind that this story is Lauren Montgomery’s “head canon” and is technically not part of the canon as defined in actual episodes of the program. (The italicized statements below are direct quotations from Lauren Montgomery, and the screen caps were made by yours truly.)

In one of the final episodes of last season, you can see in a shot of Olia piloting that she has some photos taped to the side of her console.

In those photos there is a picture of Olia and her eldest son. He looks to be about the human equivalent of 15.

There is a picture of Olia’s younger son on a playground. He looks to be about 10.

There is also another picture of 2 adults. On male, one female. The male is Olia’s brother, and the female is the sister of Olia’s late husband.

The pictures were all taken by her late husband which is why you don’t see him in any of the photos. But he looks a lot like his sister and his older son.

Olia and her husband were active in the rebellion from a young age. But Olia scaled back her involvement when they started a family, while her husband continued working full time with the rebels. Eventually Olia’s husband and brother were killed in an attack. They are just 2 of the many honored by the monument that Pidge visited in “Reunion.” As the rebellion continued to lose numbers, Olia asked her sister in law to care for her children while she stepped up and reclaimed her place as one of the rebellion’s top pilots. She tries to visit her children as often as she can between missions.

She’s had a tough life, but if she can help free the universe from Galra rule, then it all would have been for something.

Thanks to Lauren Montgomery for providing some insight into Olia that we might not have otherwise gained from the program itself!

Posted in Interviews, Special Features, TV, Voltron, Voltron: Legendary Defender

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