Voltron

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Television series
German title Voltron - The Protector of the Universe
Voltron - Defender of the Universe
Original title Voltron - Defender of the Universe
Voltron-logo.svg
Country of production Japan , USA
original language Japanese , English
Year (s) 1981, 1982 (Japan)
1984 (USA)
length 25 minutes
Episodes 128 in 3 seasons
genre Mecha , science fiction , action
idea Saburo Yatsude
music Asei Kobayashi ,
Dale Schacker
German-language
first broadcast
May 19, 1995 on RTL 2
synchronization

Voltron is an animated series from the year 1984. The series is a US compilation of the two Anime - TV shows Hyakujū-Ō GoLion ( jap. 百獣王ゴライオン Hyakujū-Ō Goraion ) and Kiko Kantai Dairugger XV ( Jap. 機甲艦隊ダイラガーXV Kiko Kantai Dairagā XV ), which were produced by the Japanese animation studio Tōei Animation in 1981 and 1982 and have no direct relationship to one another.

The anime can be classified into the genres of mecha , science fiction and action . Between 2016 and 2018, a 78-part remake called Voltron: Legendary Defender was produced for Netflix .

content

Lion Force Voltron ( Hyakujū-Ō Golion )
Five young space pilots are sent to the planet Arus. This is attacked by the tyrannical king Zarkon, ruler of the planet Doom. In order to still save Arus, the space pilots have to activate five lion robots and use them to form Voltron, the most powerful giant robot in the universe. Thus the space pilots become the new Voltron Force. They are supported by Princess Allura, the princess of Arus, as well as her advisor Coran and the royal nanny Nanny. Zarkon and his witch Haggar always send new Robeasts against Voltron, which are used by Commander Yurak and Prince Lotor.

Vehicle Force Voltron ( Kikō Kantai Dairugger XV )
Peace is threatened again. The mighty Drule Empire wants to overthrow the Galactic Federation and only a new Voltron robot can prevent it. Unlike the Löwen-Voltron, this one consists of different vehicles that are controlled by 15 pilots. These are divided into three teams. The navy team, the land team, and the air team.

Characters

The Voltron Force

  • Keith Akira Kogane ( 黄金 旭 , Kogane Akira ):
    Keith is the captain of the five space pilots and the future leader of the Voltron Force. He wears a red uniform and controls the red lion, which forms the right arm of Voltron. Keith is a quiet guy who invests a lot of time in making decisions. He acts calmly and calmly in his function as a guide. He designs his strategies with the same prudence. His hobbies are reading or hanging out in the lounge. He also seems to like Princess Allura in particular and has a strong desire to protect her.
  • Lance Charles McClain ( 黒 鋼 勇 , Kurogane Isamu ):
    The Deputy Leader of the Voltron Force. Lance controls the blue lion that forms the right foot and wears a blue uniform. He is quite tall, lanky and his cynical and sometimes insidious manner often creates tension in the team. Nor does he shy away from giving Keith and the others his opinion, which is often accompanied by sayings. Apart from that, he's a good friend and lets out the women heroes every now and then.
  • Darrell “Pidge” Stoker ( 錫 石 「チ ビ」 宏 , Suzuishi “Chibi” Hiroshi ):
    Pidge is the youngest and smallest of the group. He controls the Green Lion, which is Voltron's left arm, and is also wearing a green uniform. Pidge is a child prodigy and got through academy at a young age. He specializes in all kinds of sciences. He is just like the others, an ace in martial arts and uses his small size to his advantage. Pidge doesn't mince what the bad guys in particular get to hear. He has a twin brother named Chip who is on the Vehicle Voltron Air Team.
  • Tsuyoshi "Hunk" Garrett ( 青銅 強 , Seidō Tsuyoshi ):
    Tsuyoshi, or "Hunk" (German "Brocken"), is the strong man of the team. He controls the yellow lion, which forms the left leg of Voltron, and wears an orange uniform. He is the oldest in the group. Despite his tough appearance, he has a heart of gold and is also a true child friend. Since he doesn't miss a single meal, his colleagues often tease him.
  • Sven Shirogane Holgersson ( 銀 貴 , Shirogane Takashi ):
    Sven is from Norway and is the original current leader. He wears a black uniform and is piloting the black lion that forms the head and body of Voltron. In the sixth episode he was seriously injured by Haggar and transferred to the planet Ebb, where he was to be nursed back to health. As a result, he is replaced in his role as pilot of the Blue Lion by Princess Allura. Even if he does not disclose it, he is a very emotional person and lets his heart guide him.
  • Allura Altea ( フ ァ ー ラ 姫 , Fāra-hime ):
    Allura is the princess of the planet Arus and ruler of the kingdom of Altair. After Lance's departure, she is the pilot of the Blue Lion and wears a pink uniform. Allura is a real naive, especially when it comes to romances. In spite of all this, she is very tough and quite a capable ruler, as long as Coran and Nanny do not interfere. She never gives up and is willing to learn everything to defend the planet with her Blue Lion.

The kingdom of Arus

  • Coran ( Raible ):
    Allura's advisor. After Allura's father (King Alfor) dies, Coran and Nanny take on the task of making Allura a ruler. He knows a lot about Arus, Voltron and the related technology. Coran is very wise and every now and then gives instructions to the Voltron Force.
  • Nanny ( Hys ):
    Allura's over-cautious nanny. Nanny is very quick-tempered and makes sure that everything is in order. She's not very popular with the guys from the Voltron Force, as she thinks the four are crude peasant trampers.

The villains from the planet Doom

  • King Zarkon ( Emperor Daibazaal ):
    King Zarkon is the ruler of the planet Doom. Generally he sits on his throne and lets his witch Haggar, his commanders and his son draw up the plans for the conquest of Arus. If these fail again, however, he does not hold back with various insults and ranting.
  • Prince Lotor Sincline ( Prince Sincline ):
    Crown Prince Lotor is the wicked son of King Zarkon. He has a great dislike for his father, even hates him to the death. He would love to rule his father's kingdom and the whole galaxy together with Princess Allura, for whom he has a strong affection. Lotor is a very sly, smart and powerful opponent who does not give up easily.
  • Haggar ( Honerva ):
    The witch Haggar is responsible, among other things, for the creation of the gigantic RoBeasts that Zarkon repeatedly sends against Voltron. Their magic power is not to be despised. It was also she who split Voltron into five lion robots. Haggar is constantly accompanied by her terror cat Kovar.
  • Commander Yurak ( Sadak ):
    Yurak is Zarkon's first commander sent to fight Voltron. At first he hesitantly accepts the help of Haggars RoBeasts. He relies entirely on his loud voice, with which he gives orders, roaring wildly. His favorite saying is “Come on, you dogs!”.

Production and publication

Japan

The anime television series Hyakujū-Ō Golion was produced in 1981 with 52 episodes by the Toei Animation studio. Hiroshi Sasagawa, Katsuhiko Taguchi, Kazushi Nomura and Kazuyuki Okaseko served as directors. The series was broadcast from March 4, 1981 to February 24, 1982 on the Japanese broadcaster TV Tokyo .

In 1982, Tōei Animation produced the anime Kikō Kantai Dairugger XV, directed by Kozo Morishita . The character design comes from Shigetaka Aoyama. TV Tokyo aired this series from March 3, 1982 to March 23, 1983.

International

The US film company World Events Productions changed the two independent animes for international broadcasting and combined them to form the series Voltron - Defender of the Universe . Furthermore, music and noises were replaced, scenes were cut and the plot changed. A lot of violence has been removed and, unlike the original, many characters don't die, Zarkon's army consists of robots instead of humans.

This resulting series was broadcast in the USA from September 10, 1984 on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC). The English-language first broadcast ended on November 18, 1985. The television stations USA Network , Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network later broadcast the series .

Furthermore, Voltron - Defender of the Universe was also in Canada ( CBC Television ), Australia ( Australian Broadcasting Corporation ), Latin America , Italy , Portugal ( RTP1 ), Poland , Taiwan , Spain , Ukraine ( International Commercial Television ), Russia , France ( Antenna 2 ), Bulgaria ( Efir 2 ), the Middle East, and the Philippines ( ABS-CBN ) televised.

The American studio Netter Digital produced a sequel to the series entitled Voltron: The Third Dimension , which was broadcast on the Fox Network. Production was stopped after 26 episodes. The series has been translated into Spanish and Arabic.

From May 19, 1995, the anime was shown as Voltron - The Protector of the Universe on the German private broadcaster RTL 2 , but only 76 episodes were broadcast. First the second season was broadcast with the Vehicle Force and then 25 episodes of the Lion Force. Under the title Voltron: Defender of the Universe , the first season was released entirely on DVD from 2008 to 2011. Since the old dubbed version could no longer be found, the season was completely re-dubbed. A modern way of speaking was incorporated in the resynchronization. For example, a computer-based encyclopedia is called Wikipedia , which did not exist at the time the series was produced. The American order was followed for the DVD release. The season was later published as a complete edition in a collection box.

DVD release

No. publication Episodes
1 March 31, 2008 1-10
2 August 25, 2008 11-19
3 October 6, 2008 20-28
4th May 25, 2009 29-37
5 May 28, 2010 38-46
6th April 29, 2011 47-52

synchronization

The series was re-dubbed for the German release on DVD in 2008.

role Japanese speaker ( seiyū ) German speaker
Keith Akira Kogane Kazuhiko Inoue Dennis Saemann
Tsuyoshi 'Hunk' Garrett Tesshō Genda René Dawn-Claude
Darrell 'Pidge' stoker Masako Nozawa Dennis Sunday
Lance Charles McClain Yū Mizushima Daniel Käser
Sven Shirogane Holgersson Ryūsei Nakao Timo R. Schouren
Princess Allura Rumiko Ukai Rieke Werner
Coran Yuji Fujishiro Karlheinz panel (series 1–20)
Josef Tratnik (series 20–52)
Nanny Kazuyo Aoki Karin Buchali
Yomi Winnie Brandes
King Zarkon Kōsei Tomita Reinhard Schulat-Rademacher
Prince Lotor Sincline Akira Kamiya Uwe Thomsen
Haggar Masako Nozawa Edda Fischer
Yurak Ken'ichi Ogata Volker Wolf
Captain Nerok Gordon Rijnders
Commander Hazar Fabian Koerner
Field Marshal Keezor Vittorio Alfieri
General Steele Peter Harting
Grox Jürg Löw
Haggar Edda Fischer
King Alfor Jürg Löw (episode 1–30)
Peter Harting (episode 32–52)
Marshal Graham Gerhard Piske
Mogor Thomas Balou Martin
Economist bald glasses Hans Bayer
Prince Bandor Cedric Seiler
Princess Romelle Birte Baumgardt
teller Hans-Detlef Hüpgen

music

The music for Hyakujū-Ō Golion comes from Asei Kobayashi . The for Kikō Kantai Dairugger XV was composed by Seiji Yokoyama . In Voltron , the Japanese background music was replaced by original compositions by Dale Schacker .

Obtain was used for the opening credits to Hyakujū-Ō Golion ! Golion by Ichirō Mizuki and the Columbia Yurikago-kai - a collaboration between the children's choir Otowa Yurikago-kai ( 音 羽 ゆ り か ご 会 ) and Columbia Music Entertainment to sing songs for anime - for the credits Gonin de Hitotsu (5 into 1) by Ichirō Mizuki . In Kikō Kantai Dairugger XV the opening credits were underlaid with Ginga no Seishun , the closing credits with Ai o Tsutaeru Tabi . Both titles are from Tsuneichi Kawazu.

Comic

Devil's Due Publishing published a three-episode mini-comic series for the television series in 1985. The series was later continued and published through 2005.

The drawings are by Alitha Martinez, Clement Sauve, Clint Hillinski and EJ Su. Authors were Dan Jolley, Marie Croall and Mark Waid .

Merchandising

The Matchbox company brought out a number of action figures for the series under the name GoLion. The combinable figures were replicas of the mechas from the anime.

The British shoe manufacturer reebok has released a series of 5 different Voltron models. Each of the models was 5 with part of the mecha issued, so that, if one has all 5 models the individual figures can be composed for the combined mecha.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. Voltron: Defenders of the Universe - Booklet of the Complete Edition, pages 4 to 5 (published by Anime House)