Expanding My Source Material - Voltron vs. GoLion

[desertvixen]

 So, I ordered Volume 1 of Beast-King GoLion, which for those who aren't massive 1980s cartoon fans is the Japanese anime series that Voltron (the Lion Force edition) was based on/created from.

 When I was a kid and Voltron came on, I didn't know it was anime.  I didn't know it was actually a style.  I liked it.  Still do, obviously, although even then I think I knew there were some massive plot holes.  But it didn't matter, because that was where OUR stories went.  My brothers and I must have played Voltron at least as much as we played GI Joe.  Back in the 80s, you could only get like 2 Voltron episodes per VHS tape, except for the 5 episode opening arc.  When they started bringing out Voltron DVDs, I was very excited.  And they look fabulous, which considering that they had to pretty much remake the masters, is pretty impressive.  

Having watched about the first 8 episodes from Golion (enough to cover the opening arc, the "death" of one of the Force, the fake pilot sent by the bad guys, and the white lion episode), I can see why they had to cut things down.  Golion is pretty violent.  It's also dubbed, which means I have to really watch, and not just listen.  I think that's what I'll be doing when I'm on duty Sunday (especially since my soldiers already know I'm a big geek).  I am going to order the other two sets - I only got the first one in case it turned out I wouldn't enjoy it.  The story has less holes (there's still some) in the original version, and there were some parts that really got a laugh out of me.

Major differences:

1. Earth is devastated by an East-West thermonuclear war.  (All those bits in the beginning, cities being destroyed, before they get captured?  That's not Arus, that's Earth.) The 5 explorers are basically it as far as citizens of Earth go. 

2. The beginning addresses something that I think a lot of fans have tried to address in fanfic.  In Voltron, the scientists of Arus built and created Voltron, but due to the plot holes, a lot of things seem to have either a) happened a long time ago or b) happened yesterday.  Voltron is both a "legend" (something which to many of us indicates a significant period of time) but was built by King Alfor's crowd, and although it's never explicitly stated in the show, many of us have assumed that Alfor occupied the big chair inside Voltron's Black Lion - and died fighting the bad guys.  In  Golion, it states that Voltron's beginnings were unknown, but that it was a machine that not only gained sentience, but got too full of itself,  and challenged "a goddess" who cursed it for being too arrogant.  It landed on Arus (Altea in Golion) and became their defender.

3. Princess Allura (Fala in the original) was raised by her advisor Coran (Raible in the original) after her parents' death.  It's never stated but implied in Voltron that her mother has been dead a long time, but that her father's death is somewhat more recent.  It's never very clear how long Arus has been devastated by the bad guys.  In Golion, the king and queen were killed when Fala was only a baby, at the hands of Commander Sadak (Yurak for the Voltron fans).  The ghostly reappearance thing starts making a lot more sense when you realize that her parents have been gone forever - and it also explains why her advisors are quite so overbearing.  They've raised her from an infant.  With the sub-plot of the episodes involving Coran's son, this touches some buttons.

4. In Voltron, Sven (Shirogane in the original) gets attacked by the witch's cat (the cat, BTW, is still one of the smarter creatures on the evil side) and is sent to Planet Ebb to heal.  He dies in Golion.  That's actually one of the alterations made to the plot that makes more sense, because it's easier to believe that Sven was recaptured after the hospital planet was attacked than to believe that his identical younger brother has worse luck than he does.

5. The team's humor in the dubs is pretty good.  After they break out the lions and uniforms, Shirogane is all "You all are a little too ready for us".  In Voltron, the 5 had been sent to check things out because there had been a distress call.  In Golion it's just where they end up.  Also, Hunk (Seidou in the original) has a voice better suited to his body type - bassier and huskier.  

Verdict: Not a waste of time, but not making me a convert to the school of anime.

DV (And no, this isn't a product of me procrastinating on Double Jeopardy edits!)

Comments

[kishiriadgr.livejournal.com]

You need to locate a torrent of "Rose of Versailles" (Versailles no Bara). I think it's the best anime ever, and it's not sf/fantasy at all. It's also very feminist and has beautiful art.

[desert-vixen.livejournal.com]

Didn't we watch some of it when you visited in Georgia?

I'll check it out.

[kishiriadgr.livejournal.com]

No, we didn't. That was "Legend of the Galactic Heroes". Same hair, different series.

[fitfool.livejournal.com]

I don't think I like much anime but I do remember watching lots of Voltron and Speed Racer as a kid so maybe I like it after all and I've just forgotten.

[desert-vixen.livejournal.com]

I think it's because when we were kids, there was no big sign on it saying ANIME. It was just a cool cartoon and we weren't into artistic critique then...