I've heard comments that both bash and praise this show and this prompted me to write my own review, with an eye towards comparison of the old and new show. First, I'll start of by saying that I am 38 years old and grew up with the original GoLion Force cartoons (as well as the less-popular vehicle force) and have very fond memories of the original show.
However, like many cartoons and television shows of my past, it's the nostalgia that tends to make them appear to be better than they actually are. As much as I love the originals, I don't feel that this current incarnation destroys or sullies the intent or memory that I still hold for them. It doesn't quite have that same anime quirkiness that made the GoLion Force so unique and is a bit over-Americanized, but it gets the job done.
Some people forget how cheesy the old Voltron was and try to compare it to the kid-oriented nature of this new version, as though the old one was more sophisticated. Quite honestly, the old version had a tried-and-true "Robeast Of The Week" formula that it hardly deviated from and 9-times-out-10 all situations were settled with the Blazing Sword. Made me wonder why they didn't just form Voltron as fast as possible and whip out the sword right away to get it over with. But let's talk about the new show.
I enjoy the fact that this show is employing an overall arc as opposed to just bringing out a Robeast every week for Voltron to slice and dice. While I am older and appreciate an evolving storyline of a more mature nature (which isn't necessarily evident in this show or the older incarnation), it's nice to see a children's cartoon actually asking you to pay a little attention to some details about plot-lines and character history.
Voltron's design is a bit sleeker, less boxy, and not quite so indicative of suggesting the 'man in a robot suit' that you find with such shows as Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. However, like the recent Michael Bay Transformers movies, the more complicated you make something look, the harder it is to sometimes follow it. The original Voltron was still a great looking design because of its simplicity. It made it instantly recognizable. But the current version doesn't deviate so much from the original as to make it look unrecognizable. The only thing I find distracting from time to time is some of the motions are a bit too smooth and fast to feel like Voltron is this mammothly tall robot. The sense of scale tends to variate a bit too much.
I do like that they try to recreate some of the iconic animations from the original series, such as the arm cross, blazing sword formation, and Voltron rising with a quick focus on each lion face. Tweaks my nostalgia a bit.
I love the concept of the personal weapons that mold to each user's abilities. A bit 'deus ex machina' at times, but they do serve a purpose.
Some things I absolutely hate or find annoying:
The theme song needs to go. Horrible drek.
Andrew Francis as Lance is like nails on a chalkboard to me. Almost as bad as Neil Ross voicing Jeff from the Vehicle Force (which is amusing to me considering he voiced Keith for GoLion Force which I don't find annoying at all).
The animation style isn't horrible, but it's not great either. While they try to make the fights interesting, they sometimes have this stop and start quality to them that takes away from the overall pace. A bit too simplistic at times and again, missing that quirkiness that makes anime so distinct.
I'm enjoying this series, as much as a 38 year old man can. It's slowly growing into it's own and it's really just whetting my appetite for the long-awaited live-action version. The show's not perfect, but it has held my interest.
On a side note, having nothing to do with this review, I've read about some confusion concerning Larmina's relationship to Allura. Just for the record, she is Allura's niece. If this flies in the face of what you know about the old series, I recommend not being so slavishly tied to what people love to crow about as "canon". It's a cartoon.
However, like many cartoons and television shows of my past, it's the nostalgia that tends to make them appear to be better than they actually are. As much as I love the originals, I don't feel that this current incarnation destroys or sullies the intent or memory that I still hold for them. It doesn't quite have that same anime quirkiness that made the GoLion Force so unique and is a bit over-Americanized, but it gets the job done.
Some people forget how cheesy the old Voltron was and try to compare it to the kid-oriented nature of this new version, as though the old one was more sophisticated. Quite honestly, the old version had a tried-and-true "Robeast Of The Week" formula that it hardly deviated from and 9-times-out-10 all situations were settled with the Blazing Sword. Made me wonder why they didn't just form Voltron as fast as possible and whip out the sword right away to get it over with. But let's talk about the new show.
I enjoy the fact that this show is employing an overall arc as opposed to just bringing out a Robeast every week for Voltron to slice and dice. While I am older and appreciate an evolving storyline of a more mature nature (which isn't necessarily evident in this show or the older incarnation), it's nice to see a children's cartoon actually asking you to pay a little attention to some details about plot-lines and character history.
Voltron's design is a bit sleeker, less boxy, and not quite so indicative of suggesting the 'man in a robot suit' that you find with such shows as Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. However, like the recent Michael Bay Transformers movies, the more complicated you make something look, the harder it is to sometimes follow it. The original Voltron was still a great looking design because of its simplicity. It made it instantly recognizable. But the current version doesn't deviate so much from the original as to make it look unrecognizable. The only thing I find distracting from time to time is some of the motions are a bit too smooth and fast to feel like Voltron is this mammothly tall robot. The sense of scale tends to variate a bit too much.
I do like that they try to recreate some of the iconic animations from the original series, such as the arm cross, blazing sword formation, and Voltron rising with a quick focus on each lion face. Tweaks my nostalgia a bit.
I love the concept of the personal weapons that mold to each user's abilities. A bit 'deus ex machina' at times, but they do serve a purpose.
Some things I absolutely hate or find annoying:
The theme song needs to go. Horrible drek.
Andrew Francis as Lance is like nails on a chalkboard to me. Almost as bad as Neil Ross voicing Jeff from the Vehicle Force (which is amusing to me considering he voiced Keith for GoLion Force which I don't find annoying at all).
The animation style isn't horrible, but it's not great either. While they try to make the fights interesting, they sometimes have this stop and start quality to them that takes away from the overall pace. A bit too simplistic at times and again, missing that quirkiness that makes anime so distinct.
I'm enjoying this series, as much as a 38 year old man can. It's slowly growing into it's own and it's really just whetting my appetite for the long-awaited live-action version. The show's not perfect, but it has held my interest.
On a side note, having nothing to do with this review, I've read about some confusion concerning Larmina's relationship to Allura. Just for the record, she is Allura's niece. If this flies in the face of what you know about the old series, I recommend not being so slavishly tied to what people love to crow about as "canon". It's a cartoon.