Cosmic Confusion
I was of a single-digit age when I first watched VOLTRON: DEFENDER OF THE UNIVERSE in 1984. Over four decades later, I still recall having been confused by the ways in which the show’s opening narration refers to universes, galaxies, and solar systems. Here is the troubling part of the narration, with all the astronomical terms emphasized.
From days of long ago, from uncharted regions of the universe, comes a legend: the legend of Voltron, Defender of The Universe — a mighty robot, loved by good, feared by evil. As Voltron’s legend grew, peace settled across the galaxy. On planet Earth, a Galaxy Alliance was formed. Together with the good planets of the solar system, they maintained peace throughout the universe…until a new horrible menace threatened the galaxy.
The opening narration seems to suggest that a universe, a galaxy, and a solar system are the same thing. Even at that young age, I already understood what a solar system was, what a galaxy was, and what the universe was. They weren’t the same thing.
- A solar system is a group of planets that orbit one or more suns.
- A galaxy is a group of solar systems.
- The universe is the group of galaxies and…everything else.
Despite this understanding, I was also young enough to have thought that because VOLTRON was written by grown-ups, maybe they knew things about space that I didn’t. Maybe Optimus Prime’s voice actor was using those astronomical terms correctly in some way that I didn’t yet understand.
The Right Stuff
As an adult, I’ve assumed that the writer used the terms “universe” and “galaxy” and “solar system” interchangeably, as if they were synonyms, simply to prevent the use of the word “universe” from exceeding the use of the word “the.”
Does the narration misuse the terms? Let’s examine.
- “The legend of Voltron, Defender of the Universe,” comes “from uncharted regions of the universe.” This is fine.
- “Voltron’s legend grew,” and it is implied that the legend catalyzed the peace that “settled across the galaxy.” Based on the next statement, “the galaxy” is presumably the Milky Way, home to Earth. This is fine.
- “On Planet Earth, a Galaxy Alliance was formed.” This is fine.
The next statement is not so fine.
Houston, We Have a Problem?
The next, last space statement is where things seem to fall apart.
“Together with the good planets of the solar system, they maintained peace throughout the universe…until a new horrible menace threatened the galaxy.”
“They” refers to the Galaxy Alliance. It seems that the Alliance’s initial members included Earth and other “good planets” in Earth’s solar system. In the real world, we know of no sentient life on any planet but Earth, so VOLTRON‘s non-Earth “good planets” are presumably colonies. The presence of colony planets might be a precursor to the overcrowded galaxy that is repeatedly mentioned in the Vehicle Team episodes of VOLTRON.
What is unclear is why or how the Galaxy Alliance, whose initial members hail from a single solar system, could maintain “peace throughout the universe,” or even Earth’s galaxy. Perhaps the Alliance began with an overly ambitious charter, or maybe the charter was humbler at the start and gradually expanded to “throughout the universe” as more planets joined the Alliance from beyond Earth’s solar system and even beyond Earth’s galaxy. Example Alliance member planets from non-Earth solar systems include Arus, Pollux, Krik and Cinda’s home world, and Wolo and Tangor’s home world. Regardless, the claim that the Alliance “maintained peace throughout the universe” seems to be hyperbole at best.
Whatever peace existed would not last, because of whatever “new, horrible menace threatened the galaxy” that caused Voltron to be “needed once more.” It’s unclear whether the “new, horrible menace” had threatened other galaxies before it threatened the Milky Way, or whether the Milky Way was the first or only galaxy to be threatened by the “menace.”
Blinding Me With Old Science
This article was directly inspired by the “Why The Daleks’ Master Plan Makes No Sense – The Galactic Warfare Problem (And a solution)” video on the Dalek 63-88 YouTube channel. In the video, Gavin Rymill describes how the 1960s DOCTOR WHO story “The Daleks’ Master Plan” misuses the terms “universe,” “galaxy,” and “solar system,” in much the same ways that VOLTRON‘s opening narration does.
Rymill mentions that in “The Daleks’ Master Plan,” story writer Terry Nation “mistakenly believed that the term ‘galaxy’ and ‘solar system’ were interchangeable.” As another example of odd uses of astronomical terminology in the mid-20th century, Rymill describes a “highly influential” 1955 Disney documentary called MAN AND THE MOON, which “helped bring many science concepts to the mainstream.” Rymill’s video includes a clip from the documentary that demonstrates that it “was quite happy to use ‘universe’ to mean ‘solar system.'”
As more examples of seemingly incorrect references to astronomical terms, Rymill describes writings of science-fiction author Arthur C. Clarke. “In his novel 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, published in 1968,”… [Clarke] refers to our galaxy, the Milky Way, as ‘our local universe.'” In Clarke’s 1953 novel CHILDHOOD’S END, “he [referred] to the island galaxy of which our sun was a member as ‘our own Universe,'” and he “describes the galaxy as ‘a spiral nebula.'”
To justify the Disney documentary, Clarke, and Terry Nation’s peculiar use of astronomical terms, Rymill explains that “prior to the 1920s, it was accepted by many that our galaxy, the Milky Way, constituted the entire universe, and everything that could be observed with the most powerful telescopes, was situated inside our galaxy. This included impressive spiral formations, such as…one…in the constellation of Andromeda. It was known at the time as the Andromeda Nebula.”
Rymill further explains that until astronomer Edwin Hubble’s 1924 observations proved the existence of other galaxies, our Milky Way galaxy was indeed thought to be the entire universe, and what we now know to be spiral galaxies such as Andromeda were thought to have been nebulae within our galaxy.
Rymill points out that because “Master Plan” writer Terry Nation was born in 1930, “any book he picked up in his youth would likely have been espousing redundant astronomical ideas. The term ‘galaxy’ had once referred to everything in existence, but was then recalibrated to mean just one unremrkable island in the universe, except that some people were using the word ‘universe’ to also mean ‘galaxy’ and ‘solar system.’ So we should cut Nation a little slack for this mistake.”
VOLTRON‘s opening narration was likely written by the program’s original head writer, Jameson Brewer. Brewer was born in 1916, nearly a decade before Hubble’s discovery of other galaxies, and before Arthur C. Clarke (1917) and Terry Nation (1930) were born. If Nation and Clarke can be excused for occasional gaffs in the use of astronomical terms, then Jameson Brewer can as well. In the case of VOLTRON‘s opening narration, I already provided speculative reasons for why its use of the astronomical terms might be correct in the context of VOLTRON lore.
Conclusion
VOLTRON‘s opening narration contains what to a television audience of the 1980s and beyond might seem to be incorrect use of the terms “universe,” “galaxy,” and “solar system.” By digging a bit deeper, these uses can be explained and perhaps excused. With a bit of imagination and creativity, the odd use of the terms can be considered correct. Either way, it’s all in good fun!
Acknowledgment
Special thanks to Gavin Rymill and his Dalek 63-88 YouTube channel for making the “Why The Daleks’ Master Plan Makes No Sense – The Galactic Warfare Problem (And a solution)” video that inspired this article.
Rymill is also a frequent guest on another excellent Doctor Who YouTube channel called Doctor Who – The Missing Episodes Podcast.
If you’re a fan of DOCTOR WHO, especially classic DOCTOR WHO (1963-1995), then check out both channels. You’ll be glad you did.