#Voltron of the Near Universe

[thanos-the-dad-titan]

Let's go, Voltron Force!!!!!!

[miraculousbumbble]

Voltron x Avatar

I have a cold, so enjoy some Voltron x Avatar artwork.

Who would the avatar be?

head cannons below!

I'd like to think that in this universe as the fire nation started attacking the South Pole, a lot of the water benders chose to move out and either head North or go into hiding near the Earth kingdom.

Hence, I give you Lance Mcclain of Varadero, a small village located on the eastern beach of Kyoshi island.

Keith meanwhile comes from a line of Fire Nation rebels. His mom, Krolia is an upper member of the League of Marmora and has spent the past few years infiltrating the army and is currently a General who patrols the Earth Kingdom territory of Oma-Shu.

Keith also has a sister, Acxa, who has been traveling the world with the Fire Nation's exiled Prince, Lotor, while he searches for the Avatar.

Pidge meanwhile is from the swampy territory within the Earth Kingdom and can control the plants and mud rather than the earth itself.

Their father (An Earth Army weapons inventor named Sam) and brother (a drafted soldier named Mat) were captured by the Fire Nation a year ago and presumed dead.

Hunk is a farmer and cook who lives just outside Ba Sing Se. His family sells wheat and grain to the upper ring but on the weekend, he goes with his father to sell food in the lower ring.

[cosmicpack]

Au were after there time on the space whale Keith and Krolia continue to get visions.

Keith was always sensitive to quintessence.

He can feel the blue lions call from miles away even though it isn’t his lion.

Red will come for him from a distance.

He has the strongest bond with his lion up until the lion switch.

But the whale takes that and jumps kicks it. Yes Krolia still gets them to but no where near the frequency or detail that Keith does.

He brushes up against someone and gets a flash of their past or their future.

They are trying to form a plan of action when suddenly Keith will stop moving and talking and get this far away look in his eyes. Only to snap back with a gasp moments later and drastically change whatever plan they had. Snapping back from a vision from the future of one of his friends dying

It first happens once the battle with Lotor is done. It’s a surprise to everyone as it’s the first one Keith’s had outside of the whale.

One moment the group is relaxing and liking their wounds. Trying to figure out what to do next.

Suddenly Keith freezes. He was mid-sentence talking to Pidge when suddenly all movement stops. His eyes are glassy and far away, he’s obviously looking but not seeing what’s in-front of him.

Pidge freaks out. Shiro (one of her big brothers) was just discovered to be a clone, Lotor a maniac, and they lost the castle ship (their home) and now Keith (anther brother to her) has completely frozen and stopped responding.

She calls out to the other, panicking “somethings wrong with Keith!” The other scramble over to them. Krolia quick to her son’s side while the others circle around.

Lance, seeing as Shiro is down, Allura is reeling from all that’s happened today, and Keith is the one is trouble, takes charge of the situation.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know. We were talking and then suddenly he just froze up”

He’s still breathing and doesn’t seemed to be in distress. He’s just frozen. He’s not responding the them in anyway.

Until suddenly he gasps. His eyes going wide and he’s whipping around trying to get his bearings. He’s breathing hard and Lance and Krolia moves to stabilize and support him.

“Keith! What was that? Are you okay?” Lance was trying to catch his friend’s eyes and Keith snapped his head to him and locks eyes.

“They’re going to earth! The Galra! They’re going to attack earth! They’re going to kill Adam!” His breaths are panic as he tries to communicate the horror of his vision.

Lance feels like the floor has open up below him. “What?”

After panic and confusion. Krolia explains the visions in the space whale. How they had been blasted with visions of both the past and the future.

Since they spent two years on the space whale, it must have warped Keith connection to quintessence. Add that to his natural sensitivity to quintessence and his connection to Voltron, which enhances his abilities. This equals to a Keith how now gets visions from the universe.

The group is quick to decide to head to Earth. Coran tells them it would take a year and a half to get there and the whole group is distressed. They don’t have that kind of time.

Lance remembers how they got up here. That the blue lion created a wormhole all on its own. No teladuv or working castle ship.

Allura has always wondered how that was possible since only an Altean should be able to open one and that in a lion it would take an incredible amount of power. Power she might have now but after saving Shiro she needs time to get that energy back.

Time Lance can’t imagine waiting. His family is in danger. That was the whole point of fighting this war. To keep his family safe. He looks at Keith, who is more shaken that Lance has ever seen (he’s hiding it well from the others but Lance has always been able to read Keith) and he knows that the vision was so much worse then Keith is telling them.

They have to get to earth now!

But he doesn’t know what to do. Everyone starts packing up. Wanting to get moving as soon as possible with the trip as long as it will be. Keith takes a moment to walk over to Lance.

“Lance. I was thinking about what you said. About the wormhole that brought us here in the first place.” Keith pauses trying to find the right words. “It was just us. No alteans, not castle, just you piloting Blue.” He pauses again Turing to look up at the red lion.

“You know Red’s always been over protective of her paladin. I think- I don’t know maybe if you reach out to her. She might be able to open a wormhole home.”

Lance looks at Keith in surprise. “Why don’t you ask Black then? Or Pidge and Green? Or Hunk and Yellow. I mean your all a lot better-” the then I am dying in his tongue as he looks down.

“What are you talking about. You’re an amazing Paladin, and you’re the only one who’s gotten a lion to one a wormhole before. Not even Allura can do that.” He moves forward to place his hand on Lance’s shoulder. “Just give it a chance. The worst that can happen is it doesn’t work. Besides if anyone can pull this off it’s you.”

“Thanks Keith.” Lance smile at Keith and goes to thank him when Keith’s eyes go all glassy again. “Keith?”

Moments later Keith snaps back to himself with a gasp. His body lurching forward as if someone just struck him. The hand on Lances shoulder tightening its grip as his form starts to tremble.

“Keith! What is it? What did you see?” Keith straightens up to lock eyes with Lance again.

“It’s Sendak. He’s the one attacking Earth.”

“Don’t you mean he’s the one who will be attacking Earth?” Lance asked as he placed his hands on Keith’s sides to steady his shaking friend.

“Lance” Keith looked so scared and vulnerable “on the whale I had visions of the future and the past. I have no clue which I’m seeing now.”

Lance felt ice flood his veins. “So everything you’re see could have already happened?”

Keith couldn’t meet his eyes anymore “yes”

Lance take a moment to feel the horror of this all. Earth could already be at Sendak’s mercy before pulling himself together. For his family, who needed him to come save them, and for Keith who must have seen something truly horrific in his vision.

“Then there’s no time to waste. Let’s go home.” He makes a split second decision to pull Keith in for a hug. “We’re going to save them.” There was no other option. Not for Lance. Not when he had sacrificed so much to keep his home safe.

They separate slowly, lingering in a moment not meant to stretch.

Then there is yelling. Something is wrong with Shiro’s pod. Lance can see the fear and anxiety flood Keith system. He gently cups Keith’s face drawling his focus back. “I’ll get the others ready to leave. Go take care of Shiro.”

It’s exactly what Keith needs. The stress of the last few hours. Lotor, Shiro, clones, the battle with Lotor, his visions, and now Shiro’s in trouble again. Lance stepping in to take weight from us makes it feel like he can breath a little.

Keith rushes off to Shiro begging him to fight, to stay alive.

Meanwhile Lance helps Hunk and Pidge ready to go. He checks in on Allura and Coran to make sure they are ready. He makes sure Romelle has a place to go, she’s riding with him. She had wanted to stay with Keith and Krolia but Black was pretty full with Keith, Krolia, the wolf, and Shiro’s pod. Lance offers her a ride. He understands that she’s the odd one out right now and boy does he know how that feels.

Once they know Shiro is going to be okay. They’re ready to take off. Lance takes a moment to breath. He focuses on his bond with Red. ‘Please. I need to get home. Please help me protect my family.’

Let us protect our pride, Son of A-

Lance misses what Red was about to say when he heared Romelle gasp. In front of them is a wormhole. Lance smiles in relief ‘Thank you’ he sends to his lion.

“Lance! You’re-” Romelle is gasping and pointing at his face. He had expected her to be pointing at the wormhole but she’s looking straight at him. “Altean!”

Lances brain short circuits for a second. “I’m what!!!!”

When Lance was talking to red and asking for a way home his cheeks started to glow with the altean marks. His family had Altean blood as some escaped to Earth to hide a few centuries ago.

They head back to Earth and get there just in time to join in on the first firefight with the Galra. There are still casualties but Adam is not among them. The damage to Earth is far less than it is in canon.

Adam and Shiro reunite and recover together.

It is still a long fight as Sendak is determined to take the planet and keeps coming no matter how many times they push him back until finally Shiro and Keith end him once and for all

Keith is still having visions. Some are of the pasts of the people around him. Some are glimpses of the future.

He and Lance finally figure themselves out a get together. While Lance is introducing Keith to his family Keith gets hit with a vision. Lance explains what’s happening as he holds Keith’s hand and waits for him to come back to himself. It doesn’t take more than a minute. Lance braces himself for some horrible news, but Keith jumps up and runs straight to the kitchen. Everyone wonders why until he opens the kitchen door just in time for a pan in the stove to ignite. Someone had left the stove on and now there is a fire. Keith puts it out with no panic or surprise. Once the fire is handled, Lance walks up to him. “So your vision…” -Lance “house fire”-Keith.

Needless to say the family finds him weird but endearing.

Everything is going well until one night Keith wakes up screaming. Hagar is still alive. And she’s going after the Alteans. And Allura is going to die.

[autisticlancemcclain]

Advisor Sivo has been around a long, long time.

Not quite as long as Voltron’s advisor, of course. In fact Sivo isn’t sure anyone else has had the unfortunate circumstance to live as technically long as the redheaded Altean has. He has still, however, lived many dozens of decaphoebes, and has undergone countless phases and ways of living throughout his life. He has known the entirety of being a child, the ins and outs of adolescence, the panic of growing into yourself as a young adult. He’s familiar with the strange, non-linear growth a person undergoes — not physically, as that varies from species to species, but the process of maturity is nearly universal. Sivo is familiar with the awkwardness, the uncertainty, the shyness.

He thinks he might know why the young Blade member is shrouded in the shadows of the ballroom, staring longingly at the partiers.

He approaches the young man, obviously so as to not startle him, and simply leans next to him for a few moments once he is near. The young man turns his eyes slightly to look at the advisor with curiosity, a wariness in his indigo eyes, but does not tilt his head.

“Hello,” Sivo greets after several minutes of uncertain but not uncomfortable silence. “My name is Sivo. I am the advisor to the Queen of Mlkaway.”

The young Blade inclines his head. “Keith,” he says. His voice is low, soft; someone who is not used to introducing himself, to speaking up.

Sivo’s lips quirk up. A loner, then.

“The rest of the Blades are dancing and making merry,” Sivo points out, although he knows he does not need to. His statement is more about the unspoken — why aren’t you?

The young Blade — Keith — has no problem picking up on it. Some amusement bleeds into his eyes at Sivo’s nosiness. “I’m not much of a dancer.” Keith’s sentence is short — not clipped, not dismissive, but not exactly open, either. He will not be continuing the conversation on his own, and he may not have the patience for endless questions.

Sivo exhales, leaning back and deciding to read the man’s silence, to simply watch with him. He observes him out of his peripherals — something the Blade most definitely notices and allows — noticing the way he taps his foot rapidly, as if he’s waiting for something. A slight smile has remains on his face, as well, as if he can’t quite force the usual blankness a Blade would have when their mask is off. He looks back at Sivo every so often, but mostly his gaze is trained out to the ballroom; watching, observing, smiling.

Sivo squints. He had originally assumed that Keith was simply too awkward or shy to join in the celebration, like Sivo once was himself, but now the advisor is not so sure. Keith’s posture is not hunched, like someone who is uncomfortable. In fact he looks relaxed, pleased. He’s watching wistfully, almost, gazing into the crowd, but there is no desire to join, really. How strange. Sivo leans closer, trying to trace the man’s eyes. Whom is he watching, then, if he’s not simply watching the crowd? Whom has this young man singled out?

Keith must notice his struggle, because he chuckles slightly to himself. He tilts his head in Sivo’s direction, gesturing for him to lean close, follow his pointing finger. Before he can say anything, a loud, high-pitched laugh rings through the crowd, cutting over the music and dancing and chatting, and Keith’s smile gets wider.

“That’s the Red Paladin of Voltron,” Keith says, softer even than before; not quieter but saccharine, almost. Besotted.

Oh.

“I see,” says Sivo, not even bothering to hide his smile. “A Paladin. Quite the…choice, for people to admire.”

Keith pulls back a bit, but his smile doesn’t fade. His eyes follow the Paladin, tracing the vibrant way he moves, twirling from partner to partner at every song change, dress spinning about dizzyingly; slender brown hands tapping along to the beat of every song and mouth smiling blindingly wide at every person he sees.

The Red Paladin is the star of the evening, drawing stares and sighs from every party goer, mutters of envy from every unfortunate soul who does not get a chance to wrap him in their arms. The Paladin makes quite the effort to spread the wealth, however, never dancing with anyone twice except perhaps his friends; regularly spinning the Blue Paladin around, dresses swishing, lifting and throwing the squawking but laughing Green Paladin in the air, startling a deep laugh out of the Black Paladin with a sudden dip, twirling under the arm of the Yellow Paladin. No, the Red Paladin makes endless time for his friends. Everyone else is blessed with his smile, but only just enough of his time to make them desperate for more than they will ever get.

Truly the belle of the ball.

“I know,” Keith says, eyes still glued to the Red Paladin’s vibrancy.

Sivo hums. “Are you going to ask him to dance?” He tries to keep the doubt out of his voice, but he’s not sure he manages.

The Blade does not seem to take offense, however, and only ducks his head, playing with a ring on his finger. “I don’t need to.”

“…Ah,” Sivo says, as if he understands, even though he most certainly does not. As far as he’s noticed, the Red Paladin has yet to ask someone to dance, most people having deigned to ask him, almost clambering over each other for the opportunity.

But Keith offers no more explanation. The rest of Sivo’s questions, although sporadic, are answered only with vague hums or shakes of Keith’s head, so he stops bothering. He simply leans back against the wall, mirroring the Blade’s crossed arms, and enjoys his company. This is why Sivo became an advisor, after all. The chance to meet and spend time with new people, however briefly, has always entranced him. Each interaction changes him in some way.

“Alright,” announces a voice over the speakers, lively music fading into something softer, more intimate. “The night is coming to a close. This will be our last song. Grab your final partners and spin then around one last time, everyone. I’ll play a good one.”

“It was good meeting you, Advisor Sivo,” Keith says, pushing off the wall.

Sivo blinks at him. “Oh, and you as well. Be careful, dear boy.”

Keith nods once, then hurries off, cutting through the crowd as politely but firmly as he can. At first, Sivo assumes Keith is trying to exit the ballroom before the last song to avoid the crowd, but very quickly he realizes that’s not the case, as Keith pushes further and further to the centre of it. He snakes by spinning people in dresses, ducks under elbows, slides away from waving arms. He’s taller than most of the gathered crowd, and the only one dressed in armour, so he’s easy to track, making a beeline to the Red Paladin.

Sivo huffs to himself. He can admire the effort, but he is not the only one clambering to be the last to dance with the Red Paladin. Several others are pushing their ways through, glasses of sparking fruit wine — a clear favourite of the man’s — clutched in their hands, almost as offerings. Keith has barely made a dent at the edge of the crowd, he’s never even going to catch the other man’s attention —

“Keith!”

The call cuts over the music, loud and clear and elated, making several couples and groups look around in confusion. Sivo can’t quite see who’s making the noise over all the people, so he stands on a chair, straining to see over the crowd.

“Keith, Keith, you made it!”

Finally, the cause of the commotion is made clear — the Red Paladin, one hand clutching the hem of his dress so he can run, the other waving frantically in the air, practically sprinting across the dance floor, crowd parting for him easily. At the other end of the crowd stands Keith, no longer pushing through the throng of people but standing firmly in one place, fond grin lighting up his face and squishing his cheeks, arms spread slightly. Sivo rushes forward to hear better.

Finally the Red Paladin is near him, but he does not slow down even slightly, sprinting full speed at the young Blade and colliding into him, arms clutched around his neck. Keith, clearly anticipating the jump, doesn’t even flinch, grabbing the Red Paladin’s waist tightly and pulling him close, swinging them around to offset the momentum. He buries his head into his neck, squeezing tighter, and his shoulders slump as he lets out a loud sigh of relief.

“Hey, Lance,” he sighs, smile evident in his words.

The Red Paladin — Lance — laughs again, loud and high pitching and bright, kicking his feet out in excitement. He presses dozens of kisses to Keith’s hair, his temple, his cheek.

“You made it! You made it!” He laughs again, almost in disbelief. “I can’t believe you made it!”

Keith pulls back slightly, not going anywhere but enough that he can lean down again and press his lips to Lance’s, gently, reverently. “I promised, didn’t it?”

Lance smiles so wide you can see all his teeth, so wide his brown eyes are nearly shut, so wide the joy practically drips off him.

“You did promise.”

“And you promised you’d save the last dance for me.”

Lance taps his finger to his chin teasingly, as if he’s trying to recall said oath. “Did I?”

Keith laughs, pressing his forehead to the Red Paladin’s. “Mhm. We made a deal, remember?” He starts to hum, over the music — which someone has lowered so that all curious eyes can watch the show, as oblivious as they are to their audience — “You can dance with the guy who gives you the eye, let him hold you tight.”

His singing voice is low and sweet, rough around the edges, joy making him confident and shameless. Lance squeezes him tighter, swaying as Keith continues to sing softly.

“You can smile every smile for the man you held your hand underneath the pale moonlight.”

Lance looks almost overwhelmed with joy, leaning up and interrupting Keith with a gentle kiss, cupping his face gently. Keith waits until he pulls away to continue, although he doesn’t let Lance go far.

“But don’t forget who’s taking you home,” he holds the last note, lifting their linked hands and encouraging Lance to spin under them, which he does with a laugh. He pulls him back tightly, back to his chest, this time, arms crossed over Lance’s torso, leaning over his shoulder and pressing a lingering kiss to his freckled cheek. “And in whose arms you’re going to be.”

Lance leans back into him, comfortable, and they sing the last line of the verse together.

“But darling, save the last dance for me.”

Lance kisses him again, long and searing, then pulls away, grabbing Keith’s arm and pulling him back to their friends, who are watching them with fond exasperation. Keith seems to have noticed where he is for the first time and flushes brightly, but he doesn’t look embarrassed. If anything the flush is pleased, almost, and directed at Lance, happy that Lance is giving him his total undivided attention, more than he’s done for any other suitor of the night.

They finally make it to their group, who all greet Keith enthusiastically, and then the final song resumes from the speakers. Keith and Lance turn to each other, again, and both of them sigh something like relief, plastering to each other so that there’s not a single spot where they’re not touching, barely swaying to the beat of the song, more hugging than dancing. Eventually the other couples and dancers look away, looking to their own friends and partners and pressing in close, following their example.

Sivo smiles gently to himself as the last dance wraps up and Keith and Lance don’t move, only interested in each other.

He’s been around a long time. He will be around a lot longer, he’s sure. He will no doubt witness thousands of couples, young and old and in between, all devoted to each other, all with love that could light up a sun.

But he can safely say the Red Paladin and his lover are the brightest he’s ever seen.

———

save the last dance for me

[kismetconstellations]

I loved your post on Shiro and there's so much I agree on with it. Now I'm interested in seeing your take on Keith for the character game plz!!! ❤❤❤

Aww, bless your heart. Thank you! I'm glad you found something to enjoy in all of my heavily biased, opinionated, and probably unhinged rambling. ^///^'

I'll give it a go, but, just a small warning/disclaimer in advance:

I have not watched Seasons Three through Six in their entirety. I am vaguely aware of certain developments from these seasons, thanks to my interaction with fanworks incorporating them, but I cannot offer any sort of detailed analyses based on events exclusive to them. For example, I can't comment on Keith's relationships with the Blades in any meaningful way, as I'm only familiar with his interactions with them in Seasons Two, Seven, and Eight.

My answers for Keith are not going to be anywhere near as in-depth as they were for Shiro, since I watched this show for Shiro. But, I will respond to every question to the best of my ability.

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

I like Keith because of the hidden depths to his character. Superficially, he's the hot-headed loner stereotype. He's a "discipline case". He stole the car of a renowned ace pilot sent to recruit students for the local military academy. He spent a number of years in the foster care system after being orphaned at a relatively young age, carries a knife on his person at all times, and doesn't take well to being challenged or having his abilities called into question. He's prone to rash decision-making and acting on impulse, and will lash out and say callous, hurtful things that he doesn't truly mean in the heat of the moment. ("Are we even friends?")

But, he craves love and acceptance from the people around him, even when his instinct is to push them away for self-preservation's sake. He scarfs down his food like he's never going to get another chance to eat, again. He can be a bit slow to pick up on the meanings of certain concepts or ideas, and some aspects of socialization are completely lost on him (not comprehending Lance's "Voltron" cheer). He likes cute things in a reserved, understated sort of way. He likes hugs.

Though he'd never admit it.

He's rash and quick-tempered, but it comes from a place of passion; from a strong sense of justice, and desire to protect the ones he cares about at any cost.

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

That he's very much a semi-feral cat in human form. Shiro is his Person, the one who earned his trust and unwavering devotion, and he's slowly learned to open himself up to trusting others, but he'll still bite someone's finger off if they're not Shiro and have the misfortune of making him angry.

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

He seems to have lost some of his internal fire in an effort on the part of the writers to turn him into Discount Shiro.

Shiro is "retired" from his position as Black Paladin and head of Voltron, and sidelined completely through no choice of his own because Keith has taken over his role on the team.

Keith gets to kill Shiro's personal tormentor after Shiro couldn't so much as best Sendak in combat.

Season Eight has Keith retreading ground that Shiro already tread, laying into Zarkon about his being unworthy of piloting the Black Lion and Paladinship. Even though that exact confrontation between current and former Black Paladin had already been handled in a much more impactful manner back in Season Two, when it was Shiro engaging Zarkon in a hand-to-hand fight inside of the Black Lion's inner quintessence while the Black Lion, herself, spectated and had the final say in who was the victor.

Not only did Shiro and Zarkon's conflict have higher stakes, both narratively and for the characters, as Zarkon was actually still alive and an active threat to the universe, rather than existing inside of Haggar/Honerva's head, Shiro and Zarkon had history. Shiro was imprisoned and held captive, forced to fight in the gladiatorial arena, on Zarkon's ship. Zarkon was able to wrest control of the Black Lion out from under Shiro mid-battle on multiple occasions, and used his persisting connection to the Black Lion to track Voltron down across multiple galaxies.

These two finally getting to face one another on the battlefield was a longtime coming. It had proper build-up, felt completely earned, and provided all parties involved (Shiro, Zarkon, the Black Lion, and the viewer) ample reason to be invested in the outcome.

It was also a visual treat, with dynamic, impressively animated choreography and physics highly reminiscent of Saiyan battles in Dragonball Z, against a gorgeous backdrop.

Contrast that with Keith yelling at a Mega Zarkon inside of Haggar/Honerva's head, because the showrunners had to artificially up the ante somehow, while standing stock still against a backdrop that isn't nearly as stunning.

And, the Black Lion immediately coming to his aid when Mega Zarkon decides to strike,

instead of watching as her Paladin is slowly strangled until he says the right thing that convinces her that he is worthy.

Keith had Shiro's essence teach him how to "see through the Lion's eyes" in order to unlock the Black Lion's wings,

something Shiro, himself, had to fight to figure out with no one other than the Black Lion guiding him.

Despite Shiro's bond with the Black Lion being the strongest bond between human Paladin and Lion, indisputably and unquestionably, Post-Resurrection Shiro has no connection to her at all. He's a silent passenger in her cockpit, or the cockpit of whichever other Paladin-Lion pair chose to carry him. He might as well not be present at all for all of the acknowledgement and deference he's given by both his found family, and the show, itself.

None of this is Keith's fault. But, it's difficult not to feel some measure of anger, watching him usurp Shiro's role entirely, while Shiro is sequestered off on his own ship to be nerfed and disrespected for a full thirteen episode season. Especially when Keith is younger and able-bodied and easily achieves or has handed to him things that Shiro fought with all of his might only to either fall short of (defeating Sendak), or barely scrape by on the skin of his teeth (cementing his bond with the Black Lion to unlock her ultimate power). Keith's success at Shiro's expense only serves to further fuel the noxious ageism and disgusting ableism perpetuated by this show and its fanbase.

And, Keith's own personality seemed to suffer for it. Perhaps it's meant to be character growth, but he seems so flat, void of the traits that made him distinctly Keith, throughout Seasons Seven and Eight, following Season Seven's opener. I'm positive there are passionate fans who could and have elaborated on this with the detail and insight necessary to fully illustrate the dearth of Keithness. But, I think it says something that even someone like me, who watched this show for Shiro and skipped over nearly four entire seasons due to the absence of him, picked up on the less-than-satisfactory change.

4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in?

A shonen anime series, either Sci-Fi or Isekai, where he can be the hero who reluctantly heeds the call of Destiny and pull off risky, reckless maneuvers on a futuristic vehicle, and/or masterfully take down foes with a great big sword, to his hearts' content.

5. What’s the first song that comes to mind when you think about them?

"Hold On", by Chord Overstreet; only because of this Keith/Shiro video.

6. What’s something you have in common with this character?

I, too, love dogs and would die for Takashi Shirogane.

7. What’s something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

Treating him like the competent adult he actually is. The one who lived on his own in a shack in the middle of the desert for a year, and set off bombs to distract Garrison security personnel while he snuck inside of the quarantine zone to figure out what they were up to. Before even realizing they had a miraculously alive Shiro sedated and strapped to a table.

8. What’s something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

Feminizing and infantilizing him, always in service of a ship. Keith has moments of emotional vulnerability, because he's meant to be a multi-faceted human/alien hybrid. That does not make him a weepy blushing "uwu" uke who sobs, wails, and cries while being choked and split open on Lance or Shiro's intimate parts and calling them "daddy".

He's a semi-feral cat in human form. He'd more than likely use his teeth, inflicting serious damage on those very sensitive parts, should someone try to make him choke on them, and I can't see him ever wanting to be sexually dominated by anyone. Putting aside that Shiro is a bottom and would never, Keith would sock Lance or any other man square on the jaw, or drive his knee or foot into an even more vulnerable area, for so much as trying to pin him down and make him "take it".

And, I know this is a popular headcanon and the show, itself, tried to lend credence to it by having Krolia thank "Kuron" for looking after Keith for her, but Shiro did not "raise" Keith. Shiro was an ambitious ace pilot in his very early twenties, contemplating the prospect of engagement and marriage to his long-term partner while their relationship began to unravel, battling a terminal degenerative illness, and planning to pilot a voyage into deep space. When was he meant to have found the time amidst all of this to have adopted or parented a preteen/early adolescent?

He and Keith were close, as a mentor/protege and friends typically would be, but Keith certainly didn't look to Shiro to be a stand-in or surrogate for his father. Nor did Shiro view Keith as his son. Keith confronting Shiro over Shiro's attempt to conceal his illness from him plays out exactly the way a confrontation between two peers who view each other as equals would.

Keith marches up to Shiro without so much as a greeting, very abrupt, direct, and upfront, unafraid of castigation or reprisal. The opposite of what one would expect from a cadet approaching his senior officer, or any kid confronting an adult authority figure about a perceived deception.

Likewise, Shiro steps down to put himself on the same level as Keith.

While maintaining a respectful physical distance, Keith leans forward into Shiro's space, resolutely standing his ground and refusing to let Shiro hide or deflect.

And, Shiro ultimately gives in and chooses to be honest with him, rather than pulling rank and brushing Keith off, telling him that everything's fine, or it's none of Keith's business, and treating him like a child.

Their relationship can't be so simply and neatly classified. Though Keith does refer to Shiro as his "brother", there's enough ambiguity there to be threatening (see Keith tenderly touching Shiro's face

and pausing over Shiro as if he intended to kiss him

), and I think that's why very specific shippers dilute Shiro into Keith's parental figure, even going as far as interpreting Shiro and Keith as, or outright making them biologically related. It's a transparent attempt to rule out any possibility of a romance between them while pretending to pay perfunctory tribute to their bond.

As if these shippers actually care about it or Shiro in any way, shape, or form.

And, it's sincerely grating to have to scroll past.

9. Could you be roommates with this character?

I see no reason why I couldn't be. Though, I don't think my cat would get along with Kosmo very well.

10. Could you be best friends with this character?

Once again, I would be too nervous to approach him.

11. Would you date this character?

No. He's way too young for me.

12. What’s a headcanon you have for this character?

I have to go with the fairly popular(?) fanon reading that Keith falls somewhere on the Autism spectrum. Canon seems to back this by some degree, with the aforementioned "I say 'Vol', you say--" "Vol-tron?", and showing Keith covering his ears and closing his eyes on the carnival ride he and Hunk get stuck on, as if suffering from overstimulation.

13. What’s an emoji, an emoticon and/or any symbol that reminds you of this character or you think the character would use a lot?

▬▬ι═══════ﺤ

14. Assign a fashion aesthetic to this character.

Probably cliche and expected, but... Biker Aesthetic. Leather jacket in black or red, fingerless gloves on his hands, of course, tight jeans, perhaps with a tear or two in the legs, and heeled boots.

He'd also definitely wear hoodies and hooded jackets with drawstrings, so he can pull the hood over his head and secure it tightly when he's feeling overstimulated and wants to shut out the world.

15. What’s your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn’t matter if it’s canon or not.)

Keith/Shiro. Their love for each other is legitimately, canonically death-defying.

"Keith, I was dreaming. Keith... you saved me." "We saved each other."

I get emotional every time.

16. What’s your least favorite ship for this character?

The portmanteau starts with a 'K', and rhymes with pants.

17. What’s a ship for this character you don’t hate but it’s not your favorite that you’re fine with?

I think Keith/Acxa is interesting and has potential, and I kind of wish the show would have done more with Keith/Allura than the brief ship tease we got in The Ark of Taujeer.

18. How about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

I think Keith and Hunk's friendship is very sweet, Keith and Kosmo are adorable, and in a purely platonic sense, Keith and Lance do have their moments (that I don't reflexively tune out because the fandom has caused me to dread any interaction between them.)

19. How about a relationship they have in canon that you don’t like?

Nothing comes to mind.

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn’t matter?

I think Keith has some pretty solid friendships as is.

21. If you’re a fic writer and have written for this character, what’s your favorite thing to do when you’re writing for this character? What’s something you don’t like?

I like how concise, direct, and to the point Keith is. He doesn't meander, or waffle, or embellish, or put on airs. He says exactly what he means to say the first time, and doesn't put up a facade for anyone.

I've yet to find something I dislike about writing for him.

22. If you’re a fic reader, what’s something you like in fics when it comes to this character? Something you don’t like?

I like when he's actually written faithfully to his canon characterization, scrappy and slightly rough around the edges, but fiercely loving and possessing a strong- if sometimes somewhat misguided- sense of justice.

I hate when he's infantilized and portrayed as a soft, weepy, fragile child in fics that are meant to take place during the show's main timeline. It comes across as borderline fetishistic, and kind of creeps me out. Especially when he's being paired with Shiro and the author continues to emphasize how "delicate" and "small" he is in contrast to Shiro's strength and size.

23. Favorite picture of this character?

24. What other character from another fandom of yours that reminds you of them?

Just as Shiro reminds me very much of the 2003 iteration of Leonardo, Keith invokes 2003 TMNT's Raphael. Short-tempered, always ready and raring to deliver a well-deserved beatdown, prone to acting rashly, strong sense of justice, intense, unbreakable bond with his team leader.

The major difference is, aside from Keith and Shiro not butting heads like Raph and Leo frequently do (and obviously not being siblings), Raphael never lost his internal fire over the course of the series, no matter what trauma he endured.

The same cannot be said for Keith.

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

I can't recall my first impression of him, truth be told. Now... Admittedly, I'm not quite as taken with his character as I sort of hoped I would be, given how he's portrayed in well-written fanfiction. I like him just fine, but...

Maybe it's the product of me being overexposed to him by a fandom that is utterly obsessed with shoving the milquetoast pairing of him and his "rival" down everyone's throats. Or the fact that he's made to usurp Shiro's role, to the point that some of his fans openly wish that Shiro would have remained dead in service of Keith's character arc.

Regardless of the reason, Keith kind of doesn't do much for me. Strange for someone who happily ships him with their favorite to say, but that's the reality of it.

----

Thank you so much for the submission! I hope my answers were somewhat satisfactory, and not completely incendiary. (I'm not really equipped to handle torches and pitchforks.)

[crazylittlejester]

This might get venty so def pass over if u want- I apologize in advance😅

Being a Wars fan is definitely exhausting in the lu fandom as a whole, to a degree I’ve never experienced in past fandoms. I’ve been all around, from DC to HP, Undertale to Voltron (shudders), and many, many more. And honestly I can’t remember a time a character was more universally disliked for,, no clear reason? From villains to irritating characters, I’ve never seen this much negativity and, honestly, near bullying of a character. Shipping wars? 10000% yes. But individual character hating? It’s.. extreme.

It isn’t simple dislike either. From being made incompetent to being the butt of a joke, Wars is just.. dogpiled. And at first it was funny, but it’s gotten to a point that I can’t read other fics because Wars is just so poorly treated/portrayed that it’s disheartening. From mocking of his figure, to claiming he’s vain or a womanizer (derogatory), and even ignoring his background all together.

I think part of it comes from not knowing his game, so they don’t have a basis of his character. Honestly though that could be easily remedied by watching a few cutscenes or reading the plot synopsis of his game. I also think that some people just,, look at his vainer moments in the comic and say “this is all he is” rather than the additional moments when he displays his skills, or pulling his weight as a co-leader. Some people just see what they wanna see ig.

Overall I always try to not dwell on it because everyone is free to love the characters they love and express that, I just wish that it didn’t come at the cost of one of the characters being so plainly disliked and nearly hated. But I swear I’ve seen Dink get more love than Wars, and all we’ve seen from him is a freaking lizard!!!-

anyway, sorry this was so long, my Wars loving self has been holding this in for awhile and I just hate how short a stick Wars got in the lot. He 1000% deserves more love fr

I’ve seen too many fics where people outright villainize Wars in order to create more angst for other members of the chain and that’s INSANE to me. And Wars content has been seriously hard to find, especially last year, which is part of why I started writing so much Wars stuff 😭 He’s my favorite and I gotta feed the other Wars fans

I genuinely don’t get why some people actively dislike him, like am I biased? Absolutely. but i just dont understand?? is there some reason why people can look at like, Wild, for example, and go “OH MY GOD SO ACTUALLY-“ and go into a super deep beautiful well written character analysis but when it comes to Wars people are just like “womanizer twink” and that’s it?

(to clarify: this is NOT a dig at Wild fans, y’all are valid for liking your blorbo. I’m just using him as an example because I’ve seen a lot of really interesting takes on him, some of which are VERY different from each other. And there’s nothing wrong with that at all! He was just the first Link I thought of who has a lot of fans with a lot of theories and opinions alskljskslm. Y’all keep going crazy for your special guy 🫡)

[ohquail]

SBG Voltron AU - Part 3!

Chapter 1 <- Here Chapter 2 <- Here

Before this chapter starts I have some things to day about some of the names and the plot. Okay first. I skipped episodes 2-3 because I think they're boring and nothing much happens, but I did recap them. Second, there's a very very minor character in SBG that Charlie talks to, his name is Hudson.

Hudson is Haxus, Sendak's right hand.

Continue for Chapter 3:

The newly-formed Voltron paladins, Tyler, Aiden, Taylor, Logan, and Ben were able to defeat Charlie, the galran commander that attacked planet Arus.

A few days later, after intense training to be able to form Voltron again, while some of the team was getting to know the local arusians and Tyler and Logan were trying to locate Logan’s grandfather on the wrecked ship, the team was attacked by a Robeast. This Robeast was a massive version of a monster that Tyler had fought during his time in Maverick’s prisons. Thanks to the Tyler’s knowledge, the team was able to take down the Robeast with no casualties. ——— “The monster fell from the sky! It was an epic battle, but Voltron was victorious!” The king of the arusians cheered. The arusians that were supposed to represent Voltron fell over. “No. I said, Voltron was victorious!” The crowd cheered as the actors quickly fixed their mistake. “Thank you, Your Majesty, for that… wonderful production.” Ashlyn smiled, holding a small device in her hands. She turned to the crowd. “It saddens me that we must leave tomorrow, but we must continue our battle with Maverick and spread peace throughout the universe.”

The red head turned back to the King Arusian. “Your Highness please accept this gift.” Ashlyn held out the small device in her hand for the arusian. “This will allow you to contact us anytime you need help. Arus will be the first planet in the Voltron Alliance!”

The Arusian king turned to the crowd, “Hoorah!” He exclaimed holding up the device in his hand. The crowd cheered. “You know we need something like that,” Aiden suggested to Ben and Logan. “What?” Logan asked. “You know, like, a cheer,” Aiden smirked, “Like, a team cheer that we do.” he elaborated, his eyes bright with mischief.

Ben nodded while Logan looked suspicious. “Example?” Logan crossed his arms.

Aiden looked up at the ceiling for a moment before a light bulb went off in his head. “How about, uh “I say Vol” and you say “Tron.” Vol!” “Voltron?” Logan responded, his voice laced with skepticism. “No. No. No. The instructions are in the cheer,” Aiden shook his head. “I say Vol, you say Tron. Vol!” “Voltron,” Logan responded again, this time with less skepticism but more confusion.

Aiden sighed in disbelief. “We’ll work on it,” He told Logan before taking a sip of his drink. It was extremely bitter and gross. It sent a jolt through Aiden’s body. He groaned before turning to Alex near by. “Alex, what is this?”

“Oh, this is Nunvill, the nectar of the gods.” Alex explained.

“It tastes like hot dog water and feet,” Aiden frowned, looking down into the cup. Alex nodded, before dipping his fingers in his glass and tossing it towards his hair. “Yeah, makes a wonderful hair tonic as well,” Aiden bent over and threw up at that. Alex chuckled before walking up to Tyler who was standing guard at the entrance to the castle. “Not feeling well? Try some Nunvill. Settles the stomach and brightens your smile,”Alex humorously offered, holding out his glass.

Tyler furrowed his brows and shook his head, “I'm not sure we should be letting everyone wander in and out of the castle like this,” He looked off into the distance. “It doesn't seem safe,”

“Oh, these Arusians won't hurt anything much,” Alex winced as a plate shattered behind them. “Besides, it's only fair to let them see the inside of a castle that's been sitting on their planet for so long,”

“But who knows when Maverick will attack again? I'm going to do a perimeter check, just in case,” Tyler said, adjusting his armor before walking off. ——— Taylor walked up to Princess Ashlyn, “Hello Princess,” She greeted before jointing the red head leaning against the banister. Ashlyn looked over at the hispanic girl, “Is something on your mind Taylor?” “No,” Taylor shook her head, “Just…” She pointed down at the boys being idiots, “…didn’t want to hangout with them,” “Fair,” Ashlyn chuckled, “They are a bit rowdy and loud,” Taylor looked down at the dance floor for Logan. “He was just with Ben and Aiden,” Ashlyn looked down, “Who? Logan?”

Taylor nodded, her gaze scanning the crowd. "Yeah, he was with them but, now I can't find him." Ashlyn squinted her eyes, trying to catch a glimpse of Logan in the bustling crowd.

"There," Ashlyn pointed towards a corner of the hall where Logan was dumping food into his book bag. “What is he doing?”

“Let’s go find out,” Taylor suggested before starting to make his decent down the stairs.

As Taylor and Ashlyn approached Logan, they watched him hastily stuffing what looked to be an entire feast into his bag. He didn't notice them until Taylor cleared her throat, causing him to jump.

"Logan, what are you doing?" Ashlyn asked, her brows furrowing. Logan looked down at the ground for a moment before turning to the others, “I got some information from the galra cruiser that crash landed on Arus. About where my grandfather and friend might be,” “What?” Taylor asked, “Are you saying you’re leaving?” Logan looked down again, ashamed, “Yeah,” “But you can’t!” Ashlyn’s face turned hot red. “Logan, you’re one of five paladins, you have a sacred trust to defend the universe.”

"I know," Logan replied, his voice barely louder than a whisper. "But I have to find them. My grandfather, my friend...they're out there somewhere, and I can't just abandon them." He zipped up his bag, now bulging with food supplies, and slung it over his shoulder. “I should go tell everyone else,” He decided, leaving Taylor and Ashlyn stunned as he walked off to outside.

Outside, Logan walked up to Tyler, “Hey Tyler, there’s something I need to tell you,” ——— “Logan, no.” Tyler shook his head. “The download from the Galra ship was enough to at least get me in the right direction to start my search,” Logan explained to their small group that had gathered outside. “I have a pod all ready to go.” “You can't leave,” Aiden frowned, crossing his arms over his chest.

“You can't tell me what to do!” “If you leave, we can't form Voltron,” Tyler pointed out, “And that means we can't defend the universe against Maverick,” “You're not the only one with a family,” Aiden added, “All these Arusians have families. Everyone in the universe has families,” “Yeah, I have a family,” Ben interrupted, his phone speaking for him “They live on Earth. I want to be with them. Is that, like, a thing that can happen?” “You want to leave too?” Ashlyn asked, shocked.

Ben shrugged, before turning back to his phone, typing out his response. “Of course I do! Look, Voltron is super-cool, don't get me wrong, but I never signed up for a lifetime in space, fighting aliens.”

Aiden clenched his hands, before turning to Logan. “You're putting the lives of two people over the lives of everyone else in the entire galaxy!” He angrily shouted. “Aiden, that's not how a team works!” Taylor stepped in just as Aiden was about to grab Logan. “People have to want to be on it,” “They can't be forced,” Tyler agreed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Look. Logan, if you want to leave, we won't try to stop you. But really think about what you’re putting at stake here,” Everyone fell quiet for a moment. “I'm sorry. You're going to have to find someone else to pilot the Green Lion,” Logan decided, before walking off. Phantom, the little robot, whirled before following him.

“I can't believe it,” Ashlyn sighed, putting her hand on her forehead. “This team is already falling apart. How will we ever form Voltron?” ——— Alex walked onto the bridge. “Mind if I join you?” Alex asked Logan who was searching the computer for coordinations, “Heard you’re leaving the team?” “Yeah. I just need to get the coordinates for my destination,” Logan told him, “I have a pod ready to go and the bay door is open I just need the correct coordinates to start my journey,” Alex watched the green paladin for a few more minutes before Logan pulled a thumb drive of out the altean computer and started walking away.

Alex followed Logan out of the room, passing Phantom going towards the Castle’s crystal. “Hello Phantom,” Logan half continuously greeted before realizing he left his bot in the pod bay. “ALEX! LOOK OUT!” Logan pulled the Altean out of the way before the fake Phantom blew up. ——— The lights around the castle flickered off. “What’s happening?” Taylor asked Ashlyn.

“I'm not sure,” Ashlyn started to run off towards the bridge, “But I have an idea!” The paladins looked at each other before chasing after her. They all entered the bridge, coughing and waving their hands around to clear the dust. “Alex!” Ashlyn cried as the man struggled to get up. Ben and Tyler rushed forwards and helped him up. “The crystal!” Taylor pointed out. The dust cleared more, revealing a unconscious Logan. “Logan!” Aiden rushed forwards with Taylor to check on the green paladin, “Logan?” The unconscious boy groaned as Aiden turned him over, Logan! We need to get Logan to the infirmary,” Aiden told Ashlyn. “Without the crystal, the Castle has no power,” Ashlyn looked scared. “He doesn't look good,” Taylor frowned.

The King of the arusians ran into the bridge, “Lion warriors, our village is under attack! We need help!” “Let's get to the lions,” Tyler shifted all of Alex’s weight over to Ben.

“You can't,” Ashlyn stopped him, “They're sealed in their hangars. There's no way to get them out,” “We're defenseless,” Alex coughed.

“Will you not help us?” The King Arusian asked. “We'll help you. We just…” Tyler told him, Logan groaned. “This is bad,” “We have to get a new crystal to get the Castle working again.” Ashlyn put her fist into her palm. “But, to get a new crystal, we need a ship,” Ashlyn furrowed her brows.

“The pod Logan was loading, we can use that! He told me that he left the bay door open.” Alex’s eyes light up like a light bulb, “I can use the scanner in the pod to see if there's a Balmera nearby. Ben, you come with me,” Alex pulled away from the yellow paladin’s support. “I'll need someone big to help me carry the crystal,” “A Balmera?” Taylor asked, taking in Ben’s confused look.

“It's where the crystals come from. I'll tell you about it on the way! Come along!” Alex and Ben took off down the hallway, Taylor furrowed her brows before chasing after them to make sure they got in the pod safely. “Aiden and I will head down to make sure the Arusians are okay and take care of the threat,” Ashlyn decided. “And I’ll stay here with Logan and make sure he’s okay,” Tyler offered. Ashlyn and Aiden nodded before running off down the hall to get to the village.

——— “It's our first bit of luck.” Alex said, pointing at the scanner on the pod, “There's a source not too far. We won't need a wormhole to get there, thankfully,” “Looks like Logan made some modifications to the pod,” Taylor pointed inside. “This one looks like cloaking device. This one looks like tank of booster fuel,” She pointed at both of the modifications Logan added. “Using that mid-flight would turn the whole pod into a bomb!” Alex turned to Taylor, offended. Ben gave Taylor a silent worried look. “Okay then… maybe don’t use that one?” Taylor chuckled to lighten the mood. “Be safe you two,” Taylor looked worried as she stepped away from the pod. “And good luck.” “We will. And thank you, Taylor,” Alex assured her before the pod took off. Taylor sighed before walking off to the bridge again. Phantom looked at her and whirled before following. ——— Tyler walked down the main hallway, “Hang on, buddy.” He told Logan, who was slung over his shoulder. “Help is on the way,”

Tyler pressed on, his grip firm around Logan's limp body. Every step echoed through the metallic corridor, a stark reminder of the dire circumstances they found themselves in. He glanced down at Logan, his face pale and slick with sweat.

"Stay with me, Logan," Tyler murmured, his voice barely a whisper in the tall hallway. He stopped in his tracks as a figure appeared in the doorway. “Charlie,” He growled at the Galran solider who entered with what was left with his crew. “Stand aside,” Charlie demanded. Tyler laid Logan down on the ground gently before making sure he was out of the way. “No. You're not getting in,” “Yes. I am,” Charlie assured Tyler before flinging himself at the paladin to fight.

Tyler braced himself for the impact, muscles tense and ready. He dodged the first swipe, retaliating with a powerful punch that caught the Galran solider off guard. They grappled fiercely, their violent dance sending echoes down the hollow corridor.

As soon as Tyler got the upper hand, a voice rang out. “Let him go or your friend won't make it!” Charlie’s second in command, Hudson called out, two centuries pointed their guns at Logan’s unconscious face. Tyler faltered for a moment and gave Charlie the opportunity to knock him out. ——— Ashlyn and Aiden ran up to the arusian village, “What's happening?” Ashlyn asked the king. “Look! Attackers!” The king pointed at the middle of the village where some centuries were standing around. “I'll go in for a closer look.” Aiden said, sliding down the bank into the center of the village “Stay here with them,” He instructed Ashlyn. “Aiden!” She called after him. “Don’t worry I’m durable!” Aiden told her before jumping down into the village. He carefully approached the village homes and took a peak at the centuries. One tipped over and crashed. “What?” It was a trick. “Oh, no,” Aiden’s eyes widen before turning on his helmet. “They tricked us!” He told Ashlyn over the comms, “It was just a diversion to separate us and thin the Castle defenses!” He ran back to her and the two immediately started to book it back to the castle. But just as they were starting to get close, the particle barrier started to activate and go down. They started to run fast but they were too late. Both of them slammed their bodies into the particle barrier. “We're too late.” Aiden banged his forehead into the barrier in frustration. "Damn it," he hissed under his breath, pounding a gloved fist against the solid energy field.

“No! They have control of the Castle. They're taking Voltron!” Ashlyn sobbed, hitting the particle barrier repeatedly.

“Can we break through the barrier?” Aiden asked, looking around at the barrier. “No.” Ashlyn shook her head, “And whoever has taken the Castle has a crystal, which means they'll be able to fly the ship. We have to stop them,” “Uh… how are we going to do that?” “Aiden, can you hear me?” Taylor called through the comms.

“Taylor, is that you? Where are you?” “I'm inside the Castle. Charlie has taken over and he's preparing for launch,” Taylor explained, bitting her lip. “He's got Logan and Tyler.” “Taylor, listen.” Ashlyn interrupted, “If they've started the launch sequence, then we don't have much time before liftoff to stop it.” “What do I have to do?” Taylor asked, her voice barely a whisper. She reached up and pulled Phantom down as it started to float towards the bridge where Logan and Tyler were being held.

“You have to get down to the main engine control panel and disconnect the primary turbine from the central energy chamber.” Ashlyn instructed, “If you can do that, Charlie will have to reset the whole system. That might give us enough time to find a way to stop them,” “On it,” Taylor whispered before quietly running down the hallway with Phantom on her trail. ——— Alex and Ben approached the Balmera, “Is this the Balmera planet with the crystals?” Ben’s phone asked.

“It's not a planet. Balmera are ancient animals. Petrified, but still alive.” Alex explained, “Their bodies naturally create the crystals that help power mini Altean ships. I often accompanied my grandfather to visit these majestic creatures when he was building the Castle of Lions. I'll never forget the first time I saw the sparkling surface of a Balmera. You're in for quite a treat.” They broke the atmosphere of the Balmera only to see if covered in Galra mining equipment. “Oh, no. This is horrifying. The Galra have turned this into a mining colony! They're completely destroying it! They have no regard for the poor creature!” Alex frowned, just as they were spotted by a galran fighter ship.

“Hailing unidentified craft. State your ship ID, entry code, and landing destination,” The galran solider instructed. Ben gave Alex a panicked look.

“Just stay calm.” Alex hushed before turning on the radio. “We don't really need to land. Uh, we're just looking around, if that's okay,” “Unidentified craft, land immediately and prepare to be boarded.” The galran solider instructed.

“Okay. Thank you. See you down below,” Alex turned off the radio before kicking up the pod’s gas and flying it into one of the many deep caverns of the Balmera.

The ship shuddered as it entered the cavern, lights flickering. Ben's hands tightened around his phone as he braced himself against the sides of his seat. His fingers flew across his phone screen, a soft robotic voice echoing his typed words, “Alex?” “Not done yet. Hang on!” Alex prompted before pressing the controls forwards and shooting down the Balmera cavern more.

The pod wing crashed into a piece of the galran mining equipment and sent a shower of sparks into the air, illuminating the darkness of the cavern. A deafening sound filled the tight space, reverberating off the stone walls. “Hold on!” Alex shouted over the noise as he wrestled with the controls, attempting to stabilize their rapid descent.

As soon as they landed, Ben turned to glowing eyes in the nearest cave. He quickly typed out something on his phone, “Alex, what lives at the bottom of these mines?” ——— Taylor grunted as she pulled open the doors of the turbine. Phantom floated in before she jumped inside. “Okay, Ashlyn, I'm near the turbine.” She glanced up at it. “I think it's started.” “Then you'll have to hurry. Cross the catwalk to the main column in the center,” Ashlyn instructed.

“Okay,” Taylor said, her voice echoing through the turbine chamber. She turned her jetpack on and flew over to the control panel. “Now, open the hatch. Find the central computer control hub and enter the following sequence,” Ashlyn continued, her voice echoing through the radio with a steady pace that belied the urgency of their situation. “Wait, wait, wait, wait! Which one is it? All the labels are in Altean!” Taylor groaned, “I can't tell which one it is! Ashlyn? Ashlyn? Uh…” Meanwhile outside, “Taylor? Taylor!” Ashlyn turned to Aiden, “I've lost connection with Taylor!” The ship started to rumble. “Oh, no! It's taking off!” Taylor looked at the wires in the control panel. She summoned her bayard and looked in between the wires and the weapon. “Welp, whatever.” Taylor shrugged before slamming her bayard into the mass of wires. The control panel lit up like a Christmas tree, an array of colors flashing as alarms blared before the turbine shut off. ——— Tyler groaned as the Galran soldiers started to panic around him. “The main engine just shorted out!” Hudson exclaimed, “We have a saboteur.” “Find him and take him out.” Charlie demanded, two centuries turned and ran out of the room. “Commander Charlie, I've received a transmission generating from somewhere inside,” Hudson played the audio.

“There's not much time before they get the ship running again. You must shut off the particle barrier so we can get in.” Ashlyn’s voice rang out through the bridge. Tyler grunted slightly at the sound of her voice. Taylor’s voice rang out, “You got it. Tell me what to do,” Ashlyn continued, “The particle barrier generator is beneath the main hull.”

“She's telling the intruder how to take down our defenses!” Hudson told Charlie.

Charlie smirked, “Yes, but she's also giving away his location.” He turned to the last two centuries, “Find that room. Kill the paladin. Repair the engine. Emperor Maverick has commanded us to bring him Voltron.” He turned back to Hudson, “This ship will rise before day's end,”

[dynared]

The Voltron movie is finally moving forward with filming dates confirmed, sets being built, and a cast being rounded out, with a mostly unknown newcomer and Henry Cavill, fresh off of bashing his head into a glass ceiling trying to get a Warhammer 40k series going at Amazon. (I would not be surprised if that project stalled out and he was offered a lead role in Voltron as a compensation prize so he can earn some money).

And for reasons I'll never fully comprehend, I'm back on the Hopium that this will be a standout example of a Western-made mecha property, combining Japanese-style super robots with Hollywood budgets to create a billion-dollar hit at the box office.

This is after the West's near endless stream of failures at the genre, usually doomed by writers up their own asses who view anything with robots more complicated than a refrigerator with two legs and some guns as a glorified toy commercial and therefore immoral and needing to be changed. Take for instance Legendary Defender's writers admitting in interviews they fought to use Voltron less, hence the show bombing and WEP happy to erase it from the collective internet (as it deserves). Or gen:Lock writing in the first page of its artbook and inscribing in a plaque above the head writer's office "This show is about the characters". Its production company, Rooster Teeth, ceased operations in May, and while its sister show RWBY was sold to Viz Media for future use, gen:Lock is still for sale from Warner Bros, although I don't see anyone coming out to buy it.

So far, Amazon MGM and WEP, Inc are doing all the right things for this movie, whether purposefully or coincidentally. They're letting the rights to Legendary Defender on Netflix expire two years before the movie's targeted release date of 2026 so the show vanishes from the internet and none of the actors, directors, or crew have to hear the phrases "Klance", "Sheith", "fiction affects reality", or "Gays In Space." They're hiring Henry Cavill, a guy who still has a fair amount of sympathy from the general public for his ill-fated roles as Superman (being caught square in the Snyder drama) and Geralt of Rivera (where the longtime fan of The Witcher books and games objected to the considerable liberties taken by the show's writers and was shown the door), which as a bonus for Bob Koplar, will probably attract the Snyderbros to the super robot movie and provide a very different tenor to the fandom than VLD had, chasing that rapidly dwindling fandom out the door. Bob Koplar has spoken repeatedly at VoltCon conventions about wanting to capture the spirit of the original 80s series while repeatedly expressing distaste for Legendary Defender.

The main issues at this point are "What is the plot?" and "How big is the budget?" The rumor as per those same VoltCon panels where Koplar flat out said Dreamworks "did not get Voltron" is that we will be getting five new characters, rather than the usual crew of Keith, Lance, Pidge, Hunk, Allura, and Sven/Shiro. I'm all in favor of this because it means one less connection to Legendary Defender, but it also probably means the movie will be about an alien invasion of Earth with our super robot the only thing able to repel the invaders. As for the budget, we don't know that either, but given that the rights started a bidding war between Amazon MGM as well as other big companies like Warner Bros, Paramount, and Universal (Netflix was reportedly uninterested because of how badly VLD went) as well as reports from Australia citing shortages of set builders because of the high demand for them at the Voltron set, we could potentially be looking at a blockbuster with a blockbuster budget.

I'll guess we'll know soon. Filming is scheduled, as per Production List to begin at the end of December, which means over the next two months we'll probably see the rest of the cast rounded out and get a hard number for the budget. But there might be a reason to hope that the series is a super robot movie that the West deserves, and not another VLD or gen:Lock styled trainwreck from writers who don't get it.

[sparklingcurepeace]

Cartoons from my childhood pt. 1

In no particular order, I thought it might be fun to share the titles of old cartoons I would watch every now and then to pass time. Sometimes DVDs my mother bought in a store near her workplace, if my memory is correct. Other times, it would be shows I'd find on channels that I could never quite recall the name of or those Saturday morning type cartoons. Actually, let's count Netflix in there, too! Some of these are gonna be a bit vague cause I remember them, but I don't recall how much I actually WATCHED.

You might know them, or you might not, but this could be a way to discover if anyone else ever watched these! I'm trying to go for the more "obscure" cartoons so i won't mention every possible thing. Might include movies, too. I will probably dedicate a post based on Qubo and PBS kids' shows as well :).

Scruff (yr.2000)

Pocket Dragon Adventures (yr.1998)

Kimba the White Lion– the Canadian (?) Dub (yr.1965)

Chucklewood Critters (yr.1998)

Dot and the Whale (yr.1986)

Thumbelina: A Magical Story (yr.1992)

Dinosquad (yr.2007)

Spider riders (yr. 2006)

Horseland (yr. 2006)

Voltron: Defender of the Universe (yr. 1984)

Oswald (yr.2001)

Krypto the Super Dog (yr. 2005)

Cubix (yr. 2001)

Magi Nation (yr. 2007)

Sonic Underground (yr. 1999)

I think that's all for now since I am choosing to keep some titles off the list. If I remember any worth sharing, I will add.

[queenendless]

Sleepy Giggles (Ler!Shiro x Lee! Gender Neutral Reader)

A/N: SFW CONTENT. I'm in a VLD mood. When it was simple and everyone didn't hate how it all went to bad. And moi needs comfort. This all happens around S1 and 2 and I'm rewatching it again. First time doing fics here so I hope you enjoy.

It had gotten late.

Washing your hair and taking a pre-sleep snack before hitting the hay was your routine. Unfortunately for you, you had a very realistic nightmare that startled you awake in a cold sweat.

Next thing you know, you end up taking a walk to clear your intrusive thoughts. It takes you to the communal room, curling up against the couch, lost in thought when a comforting warm rumble struck right through you.

"Y/n?" You look over your shoulder to see Shiro in just a gray tank top and charcoal sweatpants. "What's the matter?"

You look away, rubbing your sore eyes with your forearm. "Can't sleep."

You felt a dip next to you before you felt goosebumps from his prosthetic cyborg arm brushing your bare arm. "Bad dream?"

You yawn deeply in your hand. "Yeah."

Shiro frowned, worry laced in his expression. "Wanna talk about it?"

While part of you wanted to keep it locked up inside, you also thought venting out would help lessen the weight of it on your conscience. "Being lost and alone in space. Zarkon taking the Black Lion. Killing you. Just … not so happy thoughts.” You hugged yourself; trembles of the dream still shaking you up, rubbing your arms from the sudden chill of the ill omens yet to pass.

“Hey.” His embrace enveloped you in fuzzy warm sensations, wiping the discomfort away. “While talking about these kinds of things is better than holding them in, you shouldn’t linger on these intrusive thoughts so much. You're not alone anymore, Y/n. You have us now. And together, we'll work to help free the universe from Zarkon's tyranny. It won't be easy. It'll be quite a long journey. And our lives will be put to helping those in need for it's the Paladin way, even with the risks that come with it. But I wouldn't change it for anything. It led me to you, after all."

You snuggled up against him, pressing your face against the side of his neck, kissing his warm skin. “Well, being with you now makes me feel better already.”

"Oh really?" The mischievous tone his voice took made your nerves go all jittery when you felt his bare hand squeezing your side. Your surprised squeak got you quite alert. “How about now?”

“Yehehes.” Your soft giggles brought a smile to Shiro's face. Now, that's another reason to keep fighting the good fight with the Voltron Force. To protect the smiles and laughter of those they care for. Including his very own space angel.

“Even … this?” He blew a raspberry in the crook of your neck, sending your body spasming as your giggles became squeaks. You slapped your hand over your mouth, afraid of waking the others, earning a chuckle from him.

“Mmm-hmm~!” Talking through bubbly laughter was difficult for you, but Shiro understood.

Your hands grabbed his, strength draining quickly from all the activity, as prying them off became tiresome. His hands slyly went underneath your top to rub his thumbs near your hips, buzzing his open-mouthed kisses all over your neck in unison, sending you into a quiet laughing mess.

"Well, they do say laughter is the best medicine." Even as his weighing stature gently pushed you to lay back down, pinning your body beneath his, digging his digits against your ribs, you were overwhelmed with giddiness. "Helps that hearing yours is too addictive for me to ignore."

"Shiro, I give, I gihihihive~!" Your weezy plea got him to stop, only for him to hoist you both back up, wrapping your legs around his firm waistline. "Thanks Shiro." His big smooch against your cheek brought another giggle out.

"Thank you for being here, with us, me and … yeah." He blushed, bashfully smiling as you smooched his cheek in return to your inner delight. "Now come on, you. Let's get you back to bed."

"M'kay." You mumbled, dozing off against his shoulder, as he carried you with ease to your room.

But even as he settled you back down, pulled the blankets over you, and started turning away to leave, you weren't ready to part from him yet.

You latched onto his robotic hand. "Stay. Please." Your quiet whimpers sent a tremor throughout his essence. He couldn't say no to you when you're giving him that puppy eyed, pouting face.

He rolled his eyes, smirking. "Move over."

You did, already curling against his figure as you two made do with your small bed. His arms wrapped around your waist, his legs weaving between yours, his face nestled in your hair as you nestled against his pecs, hearing his heart beating, sighing in content as he gave you a gentle squeeze, kissing the top of your head.

"I love you, Y/n."

"I love you too, Shiro."

With Shiro's form fitting perfectly right against your own, you were smothered with comfy dreams.

Dreams of the found family you're proud to be a part of and their compassionate caring leader that wanted you by his side as you two rode out this journey to the very end.

You and your black Paladin.

A good dream turned into reality.

[starrbuggie]

YOO! A STARBEE VLD OC? IN 2024?? MORE LIKELY THAN YOU THINK!!!!

(Most info in the photo but heres a small breakdown of the story of the white lion:)

-so the one thing that really annoyed me about how Voltron was created was there was no prototype, they had no physical proof that the project would work, so here is the fix!

-The white lion was a prototype for the voltron project, and it is smaller and less finished than the other lions, however it was supposedly 'destroyed' when the other lions were sent away

-the trash planet that it was stored on lead a group of refugees, including a white paladin, to use it to protect themselves and create a safe place, near the edge of the known universe away from the Galra. this soon became a place full of refugees and soon a trade planet for rebellions and resistances, the views they follow mean that the planet is almost entirely cash-free and relys more on trade than buying.

Calyx

-Calyx is very anti-establishment and watches over the entry ways and trade route, making sure that theres no-one suspicious coming in or out, however upon inheriting the lion, they feel as if it wants to find the others, causing them to find Allura's castle and the others during the season 1 finale.

-the white lion relys mainly on stealth and tracking, so they stay in the background for a while

-Calyx also has mild chronic pain and uses a wheelchair sometimes, they also use braces and tech to ease the pain

[astranova3661]

Voltron! By Astra Nova!

Verse 1: In the year of '84, a legend took the stage, Five lions roaring, breaking out of their cage. Defenders of the cosmos, in a battle so grand, Voltron, the mighty, with a metal command. Chorus: Voltron, Voltron, defender of the stars, Unite the lions, conquer near and far. Voltron, Voltron, in the universe we trust, Metal warriors, rising from the dust. Verse 2: From Arus to the galaxy, evil meets its end, With blazing swords and lasers, Voltron will defend. King Zarkon trembles, in the face of our might, Voltron stands victorious, in the endless fight. Chorus: Voltron, Voltron, defender of the stars, Unite the lions, conquer near and far. Voltron, Voltron, in the universe we trust, Metal warriors, rising from the dust. Bridge: Form blazing sword, in the heart of the storm, With every lion's roar, a new hero is born. Through the darkest night, we stand side by side, Voltron forever, in the metal we ride. Chorus: Voltron, Voltron, defender of the stars, Unite the lions, conquer near and far. Voltron, Voltron, in the universe we trust, Metal warriors, rising from the dust. Outro: Voltron, Voltron, our legacy remains, In the halls of heroes, forever our names. Voltron, Voltron, the legend never dies, In the heart of metal, we eternally rise.

[fancoloredglasses]

Voltron (two very different series with the same name set in the same universe? That's not gonna be confusing!)

[All images are owned by Toei Animation and World Events Productions. Please don’t sue me.]

As I mentioned before, my first exposure to anime (or, as I called it back then, “Japanimation”) was Star Blazers and an anthology series called Force Five (again, if anyone finds any footage of this series online, please let me know!)

However, years later I was exposed to another anime series that is likely to be more familiar to everyone.

[NOTE: As with Star Blazers, I am covering the American version of the series rather than the original Japanese, though there’s one difference between the two I’ll briefly mention when it comes up]

(Thanks to Peacock Kids)

(Yes, the narrator is none other than Peter Cullen, who is the voice of Optimus Prime. Nice to know Voltron has the support of the Autobots!)

Voltron (AKA Voltron III, Voltron of the Far Universe,or Lion Force Voltron) tells the story of a team of five Space Explorers who travel to a planet known as Arus to assist the government against an alien invasion. The five are entrusted to reawaken the planet’s primary defense: Voltron (why didn’t they have Voltron online before the invasion?)

(Thanks to Al Kennon)

…a squadron of giant robot lions which…well, we’ll get to that in a bit.

The leader of the team (henceforth called the Voltron Force) is Kieth, who pilots the Black Lion.

Keith’s second in command is Lance, who pilots the Red Lion.

Sven pilots the Blue Lion…until he’s hospitalized by an enemy agent (here’s the one difference I'm discussing: in the Japanese version “Sven” (I’m not looking up his Japanese name) is killed in the attack (obviously we couldn’t have the kids see someone die!). However, his twin brother appears late in the series; the American version has Sven make a return after his recovery) to be replaced by…

…Princess Allura, ruler of Arus.

Pidge pilots the Green Lion

Hunk pilots the Yellow Lion.

The Voltron Force defends Arus against the forces of…

King Zarkon

Aided by the witch Haggar, who creates giant monsters (called Robeasts) to send against the Voltron Force.

Zarkon’s son Lotor commands Zarkon’s armies and has a bit of a crush on Allura, determined to take her for his bride.

The battles are pretty much the same: The Lions attack the Robreast Of The Week, but are overmatched until…

(Thanks again to Peacock Kids)

After that, the fight’s a bit more even until Voltron finally creates its Blazing Sword weapon and slices the Robeast in half (why doesn’t it start with that?)

However, Voltron isn’t the only Defender of the Universe!

(Thanks to T. Winters)

The Galaxy Alliance is overcrowded and it’s up to the Space Explorers of the S.S. Explorer (really original name, guys!) to find new planets to colonize. This inevitable puts them at odds with the Drule Empire (it’s never officially stated if King Zarkon is part of the empire, but Drule’s giant monsters are also called Robeasts)

Like the Lion Force Voltron, this version of Voltron (AKA Voltron I, Voltron of the Near Universe,or Vehicle Team Voltron; there was supposed to be a third Voltron series, but negotiations between Toei (the animation studio that produced the original manga) and World Events (the American company that converted the series into Voltron) fell through), the team consisted of smaller vessels that combined to form Voltron. Unlike Lion Force, the vessels were three squads of fighters that specialized in either air, land, or undersea combat.

(Thanks to reminators)

As many of you are aware (mainly due to the fact that NO ONE remembers the Vehicle Team series), the Lion Force became the most popular of the two, and their story has been retold at least twice.

As always, if you would like to see an episode reviewed, please let me know!

[aquaburst3]

I sent @nomadicism an ask about what they would change about Voltron if given the chance. Since I don't want to do a whole ass rewrite fic for this franchise since I'm more focused on my Twisted Wonderland one, here are some ideas I have for how I would change that series to write it better.

(Disclaimer: I'm not a giant robot fan. Ever since VLD burnt me, I just realized that macha genre isn't for me with some exceptions like Gurren Lagann, and I'm more of a fantasy girlie when it comes to genre fiction, especially when it comes to writing. Take this with a grain of salt.)

I'm writing a show like this now, I would make it an adult animated series like Hazbin Hotel or Blue Eye Samurai.

The series would be fantasy sci fi like Star Wars

The Galra never almost conquered the whole universe yet, just a fraction close to earth

Pidge would non-binary

The characters would be young adults in their early-mid 20s.

I would add in Pollux and leave the colony bs in the Shadow Realm where it belongs.

No shapeshifting Alteans

Plan A would be to have Shiro die in the first fight with Zarkon for Keith to take up the mantle of leader. Plan B would have him live, but live out the Pollux plotline that Ryou lived out in Go Lion.

Keith's arc would be about him becoming a strong leader in his own right.

There will be a point where something blasts Keith, which brings out his Galra traits and that causes tension in the group for awhile.

Hunk would be merged with Pidge as a character to prevent the cast from getting bloated like how it did in the show.

In addition to the previous point, this would mean that Allura would be a paladin earlier and the robot would go out for the count until they find another paladin to form it.

Lotor would be like a mixture of Loki, Zuko, and Lelouch. Someone who cares deeply about those dear to him and has a conscience, but at the same time, he's cunning, christmastic and uses mind games to get what he wants.

Lotor redemption arc

Lotor becomes a paladin near the end of his character arc.

Keith and Lotor have an actual rivalry thanks to them both being half Galra

Keith never meets his mother, and sees the paladins as found family

Allura wouldn't be perfect at everything.

Allura would have a complete mental breakdown once Coran tells her the truth.

None of the group will die in the end. Instead they will sacrifice the lions, which singles that they're no longer needed.

As for romance, I'd make Pidge/Lance, and Allura/Lotor or Allura/Keith endgame depending on where the story goes.

[comma57]

devil may cry netflix show!?

hi everyone. welcome to my in-depth analysis of the upcoming devil may cry netflix anime. yesterday was the first time we got a look at what to expect visually. it was very short, but there's a lot to talk about. long, image heavy post ahead.

what's old?

firstly, let's briefly go over what we had known about the show before the trailer was shown. it's featuring dante (of course), and lady and vergil were confirmed to also make an appearance. so i had assumed it was a dmc3 adaptation, since it was unlikely to be post-dmc5. the first season would be 8 episodes long, with more seasons to come. the producer and co-writer is adi shankar, and is working with the producer for the original dmc and 2007 anime, hiroyuki kobayashi. (1)

here's a selection of quotes from some interviews with shankar, previously known for work on netflix's yasuke and other shows (something called "castle" "vania"). apparently he's working on a PUBG show too. okay.

"I've acquired these rights myself, so that the jabronies in Hollywood can't fuck this one up too." (2)

"Again, this was developed by a DMC fan for DMC fans, that was the ethos of this project. Production should start at the beginning of next year." (3)

"I feel like I can meaningfully contribute to the lore of the series. Devil May Cry has unique iconography and emotionally engaging lore." (4)

"The characters in DMC have an operatic depth and they experience growth across the series so it’s fun to – in a Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase 3 kind of way – play with and explore that depth through the lens of psychological realism and dissect the trauma buried below the surface of that depth." (4)

"Devil May Cry.. will join Castlevania in what we're now calling the 'bootleg multiverse'. Let the speculation begin." (6) (i forgot he said this i'm so scared)

"You're a Vergil fan? Are you also a Thanos fan?" (6)

what's new?

with that awesome start out of the way, let's get into the new stuff. with no release date other than "soon", we know it's being animated by studio mir, a studio based in south korea ("anime" feels like a misnomer now but i won't get into that) and previously worked on legend of korra, voltron legendary defender, and star wars visions vol 2, to name a few.

hideaki itsuno, director of the dmc series since dmc2, tweeted that he was "supervising it properly!" (7)

there was also a promo for the netflix stream that showed ebony & ivory.. from the DmC reboot. which hopefully was a mistake. and that the reboot has nothing to do with the show.

here's the tagline for the show: "In this animated adaptation of the popular Capcom game, sinister forces are at play to open the portal between the human and demon realms. In the middle of it all is Dante, an orphaned demon-hunter-for-hire, unaware that the fate of both worlds hangs around his neck." aww, dante.

alright, now let's get into the trailer analysis..!! LET'S ROCK!!!!

dante..?

here's everyone's favorite devil hunter- wait. where is he? who is this? checks notes um. well. i guess this is supposed to be dante. white hair, red coat, twin pistols, confident smirk.. it has the key points of dante, but something is off OH GOD IS HE WEARING A SHIRT? (and suspenders??)

1. his shirt? now, in all other iterations of dante he wears a shirt yes. but fans of the series would know in dante's look in devil may cry 3, he very much doesn't wear a shirt. that iconic red jacket is the only thing standing between him and catching a cold in cerberus' icy chambers. not having a shirt tells a lot about dante as a 19 year old living on his own. who's got time for shirts? he just took a shower and a demon crashed into his office. he's only got time to put on his coat in a very cool and dramatic manner. but that's not the only thing different from his dmc3 design.

2. his hair. dmc3 dante's hair is nearing shoulder length, and is pretty flat. his bangs have a tendency to cover his eyes, but in the original game (not hd collection, which fucked with the textures), there was a bit of transparency. (8) of course i would not expect the same level of detail in animation regarding the hair, so some liberties must be taken. going forward acknowledging that when i further discuss his design, netflix dante's hair is totally different when it didn't have to be. his hair is much shorter, and kinda flares up in the back. it's more like lady's hair in that regard. his bangs are also totally different. with the middle part, it looks like much inspiration was taken from dmc5 dante's hair.

3. his coat. or whatever his shoulder pads that connect to the back of his coat (to hold his sword and pistols) are different. personally i feel they take up too much real estate on his coat's striking red. the shoulder straps are there for dmc3, but the back part of it looks inspired by dmc5 (minus the skull, sadly).

4. his amulet. if nothing else, this is what confirms it's an adaptation of dmc3 for me, since we haven't seen the amulet since dmc3, and chronologically, since dmc1. it went into the sparda, after all. i'm actually very happy it's visible on his neck, since in the game, it's only visible when he's coat-less (at the beginning of the game), or when it's relevant. otherwise it's tucked away. so here's the slightly concerning news. the amulet doesn't look like how it appeared in dmc1/3. in fact, it bears a closer resemblance to the reboot, with the brown string and lack of silver encasing. scary! that's scary!

5. his guns..? these don't look like ebony and ivory, seeing as they're the same color. but honestly that's intriguing to me. it's possible the show could cover what the pre dmc3 novel covers—how dante got his iconic twin pistols, and lost a friend in the process (nico's grandma, nell goldstein the gunsmith), which i would actually love to see how that would be done.

6. his sword (OR LACK THEREOF) WHERE IS REBELLION?! maybe he stuck it in a beast. it literally took me this long to realize it's not there. feels intentionally omitted. what happened to it..

7. his voice. he has a different voice actor. which is awesome because reuben langdon sucks shit as a person.

now, there is nothing wrong with a redesign! but i can't help but be disappointed. the art style is not my favorite so far concerning his ..face.. but i think his hair was truly the biggest loss, especially when dmc3 dante is my favorite. it just doesn't look like dante to me. it's always possible he'll change over the course of the show (lose the shirt and suspenders for one).. maybe he gets a haircut.. one can hope. and those pants man. lose the gray pants. dark brown looks better.

miscellaneous musings

the last section of this analysis is on all other visual elements besides dante's design. you might want to turn your brightness up for this part.

here's a shot of some industrial looking area—looks like cement floors, some crates and metal shelves. there's a table? a bench?? and a support pillar, which makes me think it's in some kind of warehouse, lit up with moonlight from windows. also dante disappears for a moment, only to reappear a moment later, which i want to believe is him using air trick. one can believe.

the first picture looks like a tail or something slamming into the wall, which dante was jumping to avoid in the shot. for the second and third pictures, something with a bat wing like appendage swings at dante, and it becomes veiny and much like a blade. there are no dmc3, much less any dmc enemies that this could belong to. i would place my bets on it being a new demon designed for the show, unless they are drawing from some other media (novels, 2007 anime) that i'm less familiar with the demons of. it could look cool, i'm always down to look at new demon designs.

and that's pretty much it! i hope you enjoyed reading this. i will be watching it when it comes out and will definitely have thoughts and strong opinions on it, and probably will more informally discuss any other promotional materials they may share.

(1) https://www.ign.com/articles/devil-may-cry-anime-scripts-done-multiple-seasons-dante-vergil (2), (6) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i-bP9MSi0c (3) https://comicbook.com/anime/news/devil-may-cry-netflix-anime-producer-adi-shankar-update/ (4), (5) https://ftw.usatoday.com/2021/11/adi-shankar-interview-devil-may-cry-anime-netflix (7) https://twitter.com/tomqe/status/1707071614423310754 (8) really recommend this video for those interested in how the hd collection differs from the ps2 originals. also catbus has done one on dmc1 too. general flashing warning bc it's dmc. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USE6-uwB6gc

[aspenmissing]

𝚁𝚎𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙶𝚕𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚊𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚜 (𝙿𝚝 𝟸)

The Paladins enter their Lions and dodge the Galactic Gladiator's attack. The Robeast can control an energy orb remotely and the Green Lion's mouth cannon is not powerful to stop it; the Green Lion is hit and falls to the surface. The Galactic Gladiator charges at the fallen Lion. Shiro tries to stop it but fails. The other Lions arrive and fire at the Robeast.

"Lay down some covering fire so they can get out of there!" Y/N shouts. She fires the Purple Lion's mouth cannon.

"We're on it" Lance and Keith say in unison. Lance and Keith fires the Blue and Red Lion's tail cannons. The Galactic Gladiator is stalled under the fire.

"Check this out! Battle-lion head-butt!" Hunk charges the Yellow Lion at the Robeast and knocks it forward.

"You guys okay down there?" Keith asks.

"Still alive for now" Shiro replies. Shiro, Hunk, and Pidge group up with the other Lions.

"Are the Galra behind this?"

"I think so, but I've never seen anything like it"

"So, what's the plan? Shoot at it with everything we've got? Take out its weapon? Call it names?" Lance suggests.

"We want to take this monster down, there's only one way to do it" Shiro said. The black lion roars, followed by the others "Form Voltron!" The Lions fly into the air in sync and forms Voltron "Remember, we are one unit, fighting with one goal" The Galactic Gladiator and Voltron fight, seemingly at equal strength until Voltron is hit by the Robeast's energy orb

"Huh?" The all say in unison. Pancaked, Voltron narrowly dodges the attacks.

"I thought Voltron was the most powerful weapon in the universe!" Keith shouts.

"Yeah, so how is this monster kicking out butts?" Distracted by the orb, Voltron is hit by the Galactic Gladiator and thrown near the Arusian village.

"Oh, no! The village! We have to protect those people!" The Galactic Gladiator fires an energy orb. Voltron takes the hit, narrowly misses landing on the village, and flies off to lure the Robeast away from the village.

"That was close!" Shiro says.

"We got him away from the Arusians, but we can't take him down!" Pidge said.

"I got it! I'm going to power-kick that orb thing!"

"No, No, No, No" Y/N protested.

"The last time you did a kick, we fell!" I said.

"Stop living in the past!" Lance shouts. Lance has Voltron charge at the Robeast and performs a flying kick at an energy orb. Everything becomes slow motion as the kick misses the orb

"I hate you" Y/n sweatdropped.

"Oh, no!" Lance says. The orb hits Voltron out of the air. The Robeast charges at them as Voltron gets up.

"Pidge, fire lasers now!" Shiro says,

Got it! Fire!" Pidge summons Voltron's shield instead. "Oops! Ah! Uh..." Pidge scrambles to dismiss the shield.

"No! Lasers! Lasers!" Shiro says frantically. The Galactic Gladiator hits Voltron twice

"Every time we focus on that orb, we're blindsided by the monster, and every time we focus on the monster, the orb hits us!" Hunk says.

"Then what do we do?" Lance said.

"Orb!" Y/N shouts. An energy orb blindsides Voltron, knocking them into a cliff.

"Shiro, we gotta move! Shiro, are you there? Shiro!" Keith says. Shiro recalls memories and recognizes the Robeast as Myzak.

"That sound..." He mutters.

"Shiro, are you alright" Y/N asks.

"I recognize this monster from my time in Zarkon's prison. I know how to beat him!" Shiro said. The Galactic Gladiator strikes but Shiro recognizes the attack and easily dodges with Voltron "Listen, there's a loud sound when the orb returns to the base of the weapon, and every third time, that orb needs to charge up. That's this monster's weakest point. That's when we strike"

"Okay, so what do we do in the meantime?" Hunk asks.

"Defence!" The Galactic Gladiator throws an energy orb. "Pidge, we need that shield!" Shiro shouts. The energy orb strikes Voltron's shield "That's one. Two more to go!" Shiro said. Another strike hits the shield and they fall back a bit.

"We can't take much more!" Hunk said.

"Last one! Everyone brace for impact!" Shiro shouts and the orb hits the shield. Voltron falls to its knees as the shield breaks "Now!" Keith fires the Red Lion's mouth cannon. The Strike lands but the Galactic Gladiator still stands.

"It didn't work!" Pidge shouts.

"So, now what?" Y/N asks. An energy orb hits Voltron.

"When I attacked him before, I had a sword!"

"Orb! Orb!" Hunk panics. A second strike from the orb hits.

"We can't take another shot like that" Pidge shouts. The Red Lion communicates with Keith and displays the Bayard keyhole.

"Wait a second, guys! I think my lion's telling me what to do." Keith said.

"Well whatever it is, hurry up and do it! He's about to fire his third shot!" Lance shouts. Keith tries to use his Bayard but the energy orb hits a third time, shaking Voltron. The Galactic Gladiator jumps in the air to deliver a final blow but Keith inserts his Bayard into the Red Lion's keyhole console and summons a sword for Voltron to wield, slicing the Robeast once so it explodes.

"Yeah!" They all shouts, sans Keith.

"We did it!" Pidge shouts.

"How did you do that?" Hunk asks. Keith is stunned and looks at his Bayard, but smiles.

"Whoa...Heheh. Thanks, Red." He smiled.

==

Inside the Castle of Lions, the former Galra prisoners prepare to leave in a flight pod. Everyone but Shiro and Pidge see them leave. The rest are in their normal clothing.

"Good luck out there" Lance said to the alien.

"Thank you all for everything. We never dreamed we'd see our families again. But you gave us hope. You gave the universe hope." He said and bowed his head before leaving in the pod. Everyone walks away to do their own things. Keith walks down the hallway.

"Hey Keith, wait up!" He turns around to see Y/N.

"Yeah?"

"Well done out there. Your really saved out butts out there" Before Keith could reply, Y/N hugs him. He hugs back, smiling.

"You did good too" They pull away.

"How about we hit the training deck?" Keith things for a moment.

"Hmm, sure" The two walk away "I guess its time for pay back"

"Hey, it's not my fault I was stronger than you"

"Yeah, well that was then. I've gotten stronger"

"Hehe, yeah. You wish"

==

Pidge sits outside the Castle with the Altean Mice. Shiro approaches.

"Pidge, there you are"

"Why would you hurt my brother?" Pidge asks, looking up at Shiro "You were friends"

"I did it to save him"

"What?" Shiro sits besides Pidge.

"My memory of the event came back when we were fighting the monster. Your dad was being sent off with the weaker prisoners to a work camp. Meanwhile, Matt and I were forced to fight in the gladiator Arena. Matt was going to fight first, but he was scared. We all were" Shiro recalls the past.

"I'm not going to make it. I'll never get to see my family again"

"You can do this" A sentry offered Matt a sword; Matt recoiled in fear. Shiro stole the blade "This is my fight!" Shiro injured Matt and tackles him "I want blood" He whispers to Matt "Take care of your father" Shiro is dragged away to fight as his memory ends.

"You saved him?" Pidge asks "You attacked him so they would choose you instead. Even if it meant, not seeing Y/N ever again?" Pidge hugs Shiro "I'm so sorry I doubted you! Thank you! Thank you so much!" Shiro returns the hug.

"I can tell you really miss them. I know they miss you, too. Your brother and father would be proud of you, Katie" Pidge is surprised her secret is known "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me"

"And Y/N" Pidge adds, which Shiro just chuckles too.

"Of course she knew" Shiro and Pidge watch the sunset together.